REDMOND, Wash. - The Redmond Police Dept. is mourning the loss of their K-9 officer, Monty.

RPD

Officer Sam Hovenden and Monty visit with some local children.

The Department says the German shepherd, who was about 8, became ill a short time ago and the veterinarian determined there was no treatment for the illness. Monty died on Wednesday with his handler and partner, Officer Sam Hovenden, at his side.

Officer Hovenden and Monty, who joined the department in 2001, were a highly productive K-9 team, receiving several commendations for their efforts to capture fleeing suspects, locate narcotics and identify drug funds.

Officer Hovenden and Monty had more than 800 K-9 applications resulting in over 125 captures and also conducted more than 300 narcotics searches with more than 225 resulting in narcotic finds. The fruits of their efforts were the seizure of more than $570,000 in narcotics and more than $85,000 in identified drug money.