K9 Falco – Omaha, Nebraska

Died – 1/21/20
Handler – Officer Aaron Hanson

He was a good boy: Former Omaha police dog Falco dies at 14

A photograph of Omaha police K-9 Falco shows him straining at the leash as his handler desperately tries to put on the brakes. The picture was taken in 2013 by World-Herald photographer Chris Machian during a search for a shooting suspect near 46th Street and Ellison Avenue. You can see the joy of battle in the toothy grin of the Belgian Malinois. Officer Aaron Hanson, Falco’s handler on the job and his chauffeur in retirement, called The World-Herald Tuesday to say that the 14-year-old canine crime fighter was being put to sleep. Falco had developed a brain tumor that was causing him to suffer as he experienced an increasing number of seizures. Falco began working for the department in October 2008 and retired in February 2014. “Falco had an incredible sense of smell. He was like no other dog I ever had,” Hanson said. “He literally could smell the suspect several houses away and pull us right to them.” On Falco’s Twitter account, @OPDK9Falco, Hanson told the dog’s nearly 1,500 fans of his death. He suggested donations to the Omaha Police Foundation at www.omahapolicefoundation.com to help pay medical bills for service animals.

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Submitted By Jim Cortina

James A. Cortina has been involved with police dogs since 1972 and currently on the Board of Directors for the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. Jim has been appointed as Treasurer since its inception in 1991. Jim is one of the charter members of the C.P.W.D.A. organization. Since 1975 he has been a certified professional dog trainer and received his Master Trainer Certification in 1985. During his career he has provided armed K-9 strike crowd control for security agencies in Connecticut and out of state security companies. In conjunction with other members of the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. Board of Directors, he helped to draft Connecticut Statute 53-247(e) "Intentional Injury or Killing of Police K-9" which was passed by the Senate in 1993 and also assisted in implementing the prestigious Daniel Wasson Memorial K-9 Award in 1992. In 1993 he helped coordinate the North American Police Work Dog Association Nationals in New London, Connecticut. He was appointed Training Director for the New London County Work Dog Association from 1985-1987. He performed decoy work for Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. in police K-9 demonstrations, trained several local police department canines, and coordinated training workshops for out-of-state police departments. He participated in the United States Police K-9 Association Trials in Croton on Hudson, New York in 1985 as a decoy. He is an avid photographer and received photography awards in 1989, 1990, and 1991 and currently takes photographs for the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc.
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