RICHMOND, Va. (WTVR)--Facing grand larceny and vandalism charges, two teenage boys find themselves in a literal dog house when they tried to avoid capture, only to be tracked down by Richmond K-9 Officer Monty Agee and his partner Phantom.
Phantom takes his commands in German, but there was no language barrier when his handler Agee threatened to release him to track down two teenage suspects.
“After the second time of saying, “I will release my dog and you may be bitten,” they screamed out they were giving up," said Agee.
The boys were wanted for trying to steal an ATV from a business on Jeff Davis Highway. Agee says patrol officers kept containment on the perimeter, which made the job easier for Phantom and him to quickly jump in.
The teens were located inside a 10’ by 10’ dog kennel in the backyard of a house in the 2300 block of Fairfax Avenue.
“Out of the kennel came a baby pit bull and two suspects we were chasing," said Agee.
This was Phantom’s fourth successful catch in his rookie year working for Richmond Police. “He chases suspects, finds evidence they drop,” said Agee. “And most important, I think, is he protects me."
The dog kennel capture was a first for Phantom but surprisingly, not for Officer Agee. “I found an adult male inside a dog house one time in a backyard curled up with nothing but his rear hanging out,” he said. “He went in head-first, so it happens."
Police tell us the teens are juveniles and they believe the teens knew the homeowner where the dog kennel is located.
