Griffith Canine
With overwhelming public support and a financial campaign that provided 100% of its start up costs through donations, the Griffith Canine Program was created in 2013. Corporal Robert Gutierrez, a veteran officer of the Griffith Police Department, was instrumental in both the development of the canine program and the selection of the very first Griffith Police canine.
The selected canine, Gino, was born on 11/21/2011, in Bergheim, France. On June 1, 2013, Gino was officially assigned to the Patrol Division of the Griffith Police Department. Gino retired in June of 2021.
The Griffith Police Department Canine Program continues to expand and presently consists of two German Shepherds, K-9 Deno and K-9 Kaz.
K9 Deno and Officer/Handler Sergeant Kevin Strbjak
Deno was born in the Czech Republic and is a German Shepherd. He was purchased from International K-9 College out of West Palm Beach, Florida. He underwent months of training before turned over to Sgt Strbjak in Florida. The two then started their initial K-9 handler’s course training for 1 week before returning to Deno’s new home in Griffith. Sgt Strbjak and Deno have since been in training for the past 7 weeks based out of Hobart Police Department. This training included narcotic detection, tracking operations, aggression control and other police related disciplines.
Deno was purchased, in part, with Griffith Police funds specifically designated for the purchase, but also through generous donors. Austgen Properties in Griffith donated $2,500.00, The Griffith Lions Club gave $700.00, and Centier Bank in Griffith supported the cause with another $300.00 while numerous other groups and individuals also already assisted with the purchase. The Griffith Police are also thankful for the commitments of Canadian National Railroad for $5,000.00 and United Federal Credit Union in Griffith for $1,105.00.
Sgt Strbjak and Deno share K-9 duties with veteran K-9 handler Cpl Gutierrez and Kaz.
K-9 Kaz and Officer/Handler Corporal Robert Gutierrez
Kaz is a German Shepherd that was born on May 5, 2020, in Toluca, Mexico. His name was derived from the Spanish name Cazador, which means hunter.
Kaz and Cpl Gutierrez attended a six week K-9 handler course through International K-9 College Inc. The training took place in Hobart, Indiana, under the direction of Lieutenant Robert Anderson (retired from the Palm Beach Florida County Sheriff Department). Lieutenant Commander Simon Gresser (Hobart Police Department K-9 Master Trainer), Corporal Cody Riggle (Hobart Police Department K-9 Trainer), and Officer Richard Krieg (Portage Police Department K-9 Trainer) also assisted with the training and development of Kaz in the K-9 handler course.
Kaz is a dual purpose K-9 and certified in narcotics detection and patrol duties. Kaz is certified with the American Police Canine Association. The patrol duties include tracking wanted subjects or missing persons, area search for wanted people or articles of evidence, building search for wanted people, and apprehension.
