Watsonville Police salute K-9 for final farewell
WATSONVILLE, Calif. (KION)-- Watsonville Police announced the emotional goodbye to one of their own.
WPD officers lined up to say their goodbyes to retired police dog K-9 Ellex, as he had his final ride in a patrol car before he was put down Tuesday afternoon, as his health was deteriorating rapidly.
They say the 11-year-old German Shepherd spent half his life fighting crime on the streets of Watsonville with his handler Sergeant Mish Radich.
Ellex’s K-9 friends also met him at the vet to say their final farewell.
“Ellex was a great partner and friend and I will miss him dearly,” said Sgt. Radich.
Ellex was born in Germany in 2009. He was purchased by WPD with the assistance of the Watsonville Police Assistance Fund, in October of 2011. He was trained for search work and apprehensions, tracking, article/evidence recovery searches, and tactical deployments.
During his five-year career, his work resulted in more than 125 apprehensions and the recovery of two loaded firearms, which were found during article searches. Ellex was retired by the department in November of 2016 and spent the rest of his years with the Radich family.
