DRUG DOG SHOT, KILLED

Investigators Have Made No Arrests

ANACONDA -- The carcass of a trained black Labrador used by police to
ferret out illegal drugs was found east of Anaconda over the weekend, dead
of a gun shot wound.

Sasha, a 3 1/2 -year-old female, had been shot once in the head, probably
at close range, Assistant Police Chief Mark Blaskovich said. The body was
left in an area next to Interstate 90 often used to dump animal carcasses
and other refuse.

The department made no announcement of the killing, and officials still
withheld information Wednesday.

Chief of Police Tom Blaz confirmed the death only after area residents
called a number of news organizations, who inquired about the dog's death.

Investigators have made no arrests and have not determined if the killing
was revenge by drug dealers, Blaz said.

"We haven't had any recent cases that were a direct result of working the
drug dog, but it was no secret that's what the dog was," Blaz said.

Sasha's handler, officer Kent Reisenauer, said she disappeared Friday after
he let her out for exercise. He lives in Opportunity, just west of
Interstate 90, and said Sasha's body was found about 1 1/2 miles away. An
area resident out for a walk found the body and called him.

"She never left the yard, or if she did she didn't go far," Reisenauer said
Wednesday.

He declined to speculate on who killed Sasha.

Blaz would not say whether investigators recovered the slug from the dog's
body.

Blaskovich said the dog was near the carcasses of two calves that had been
there some time, but said it was unlikely that Sasha was shot by a rancher
for chasing live stock.

"Normally the owners (of livestock) would shoot the dog and call us," he said.

Blaskovich said the department acquired Sasha from Texas almost two years
ago at a cost of about $3,400 for training and transportation.