Second electronic-sniffing dog now on duty with Benton County Sheriff's Office

The Benton County Sheriff's Office received an early Christmas gift. Shadow Warriors Project partnered with Saving Children and Reviving Souls to donate an electronic-sniffing dog to the Sheriff's Office. The value for the dog and training of law enforcement officers exceeds $100,000.

By: Tracy Neal
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

The Benton County Sheriff's Office received an early Christmas gift.

Shadow Warriors Project partnered with Saving Children and Reviving Souls to donate an electronic-sniffing dog to the Sheriff's Office. The value for the dog and training of law enforcement officers exceeds $100,000.

The groups donated two German short-haired pointers -- Codec to the Sheriff's Office and Cyber to the Greenland School Police Department.

"We are able to provide two dogs that will be instrumental in catching bad guys and closing cases," Mark Geist, the founder of Shadow Warriors said at a Dec. 4 news conference. "These dogs have the capabilities of detecting a thumb drive or SD card the size of your thumbnail in walls."

Geist said finding the cards and thumb drives can build stronger cases against suspects.

Brentt Tumey with Saving Children said the group's mission is to eliminate child sexual abuse and exploitation and electronic-sniffing dogs are a tool in that work. He said he heard there was a need for dogs to find electronic devices that contain child pornography.

"We want child predators out there to know we are coming," he said.

Codec's handler is Detective Ashley Duke with the Sheriff's Office, and Cyber's handler is Greenland School Police Chief Tyler Underwood.

Underwood said getting Cyber for the schools is a way to protect children from predators. He also said the dogs can be used as comfort animals.

The Sheriff's Office received its first electronic-sniffing dog -- Denver -- in the summer. Detective Alison Nguyen is Denver's handler.

Nguyen and Denver are assigned to the Sheriff's Office's cyber division. Codec will be used in checks of homes of registered sex offenders, Benton County Sheriff Shawn Holloway said.

Read more here.