K-9s QUICK TO SNIFF OUT CRIME

TAMPA - In the hot midday sun, Ace, a 3-year-old German shepherd, circled a
sedan, all senses on alert.

It wasn't long before the black Hillsborough County K-9 dog found his quarry.

He stood on his hind legs and began scratching furiously on the car's hood.

"Good boy, good boy," said Ace's handler, sheriff's Deputy Mike Roberts,
tossing his partner a black leather chew toy as reward for sniffing out
cocaine hidden in the car's engine.

Ace, along with about 50 other K-9 dogs from Florida and southern Georgia,
are being challenged this week as part of the annual North American Police
Work Dog Association workshop. This is the third time the Hillsborough
County Sheriff's Office has hosted it.

The workshop, which began Monday and ends today, provides training in
patrol work, detecting explosives and narcotics, searching buildings,
catching suspects, helicopter deployment and behavior modification,
sheriff's spokeswoman Debbie Carter said.

The workshop also gives participants a chance to renew their association
certifications in patrol deployment and drug detection, which must be
renewed every two years, said sheriff's Sgt. Mark Olive.

More than 40 agencies participated. They included the Tampa and Plant City
police departments, North Miami Beach Police Department, Broward County
Sheriff's Office, Palm Bay Police Department, Pembroke Pines Police
Department; Valdosta (Ga.) Police Department and Lowndes County (Ga.)
Sheriff's Office.

Training took place at Vandenburg Airport, where the Hillsborough K-9 Unit
is based, the Florida State Fairgrounds and the Port of Tampa, Olive said.

"It's a chance for handlers and their partners from many areas to come
together and get certified and learn from each other," Olive said.

Six master trainers conducted the training, Olive said.

The contraband exercise in which Ace took part went on throughout the week.
Illegal drugs, including cocaine and marijuana, were stashed in various
wrecked and junked vehicles at the port.

Ace, whose specialty is narcotics detection, also is certified in patrol
work, criminal apprehension, tracking and searches, Roberts said.

The certification process which Roberts and Ace underwent required the
German shepherd to sniff out drugs hidden in four vehicles.

Each vehicle had drugs stashed in different locations, including the trunk,
under floor mats, inside the engine and in wheel wells.

An additional car parked with the others contained no drugs. Ace had to
show he could determine that quickly and move on, Olive said.

Various distractions and temptations were thrown in, including food placed
on seats or dashboards in some cars. The dogs had to ignore the food and
stay focused on their mission.

Gary Block, a K-9 handler from the Wilton Manors Police Department outside
Fort Lauderdale, was leading his 3- year-old partner among the cars Wednesday.

Block's dog, a Belgian Malinois named Rasta, is a passive alert dog. That
means when Rasta sniffs out drugs, he sits down to alert Block to his find,
instead of barking or jumping like Ace.

Block said he has attended the training here twice and enjoys coming to the
Tampa Bay area.

"It's a good chance to see how other guys do it and hear theories about
police K-9 work," said Block, a police officer for six years.

Hillsborough sheriff's spokesman Lt. Rod Reder said it's an honor for the
sheriff's office to host an event that attracts such wide participation.

"We learn so much from the other departments and handlers and enjoy sharing
our knowledge with them," he said.

The week is capped off today with a ceremony at 10 a.m. at the sheriff's
Operations Headquarter's on Eighth Avenue in Ybor City. The Wal- Mart
Neighborhood Market, at 8885 N. Florida Ave., is donating $1,500 to the
sheriff's K-9 unit.

Olive said the money, along with other recent donations, will buy more K-9
dogs and equipment.

He said most of the dogs acquired by the sheriff's office are trained in
the Czech Republic. Including some training, each dog costs $4,000 to
$8,000, Olive said.