Saturday, the Niagara County Sheriff's Office is mourning the sudden loss of K9 EJ. On Friday his handler, Deputy Richard Bull discovered EJ unresponsive inside his kennel.
Deputies suggest he passed from a medical condition known as gastric torsion of the stomach. An autopsy has been scheduled to determine the true cause of death, according to officials.
Born in Hungary in 2015, K9 EJ started his career with the NCSO in March of last year. Through Donations to the Niagara County Law Enforcement Foundation, the Sheriff's Office purchased EJ.
Along with his partner, EJ was certified in criminal apprehension, area searches, building searches, muzzle deployment, high-risk deployment, and tracking and advanced narcotics detection.
They also conducted several demonstrations throughout Niagara County including Lockport Blue, D.A.R.E., Young Marines and the Niagara County Fair.
The team also had multiple successful tracks leading to the recovery of numerous pieces of evidence and discovery of illegal narcotics.
