K9 Wazi – Cheektowaga, New York

Died – 6/23/17
Handler – Officer John Doskocz

Cheektowaga Police K9 Wazi passes away

The Cheektowaga Police Department announced Friday the unexpected passing of their K9 Wazi. Wazi passed away at 1:25 a.m. Friday after a brief illness. “He was diagnosed a few weeks ago with a tumor on his heart, and it was inoperable. We knew he was sick, but we thought he had more time,” Assistant Chief of Police Jim Speyer told Cheektowaga Chronicle. Wazi was born K9 Fello von Rapicar in Frankfurt, West Germany on January 28, 2010. The Cheektowaga Police Department purchased him and renamed him in memory of Cheektowaga Police Detective Wasyl Potienko who died in the line of duty in a car accident in 2002. Like his predecessor, K9 Iozo, Wazi worked with Officer John Doskocz. Together, he and Wazi continued to give the department an edge on criminals by providing invaluable patrol, drug detection, and tracking capabilities. “A pet is a tragic loss, but add that to losing your partner every day at work. They worked and trained in different departments and put on different presentations for the public – they were a team,” added Asst. Chief Speyer. The department has not finalized plans for a memorial service.

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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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