HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 03 Bronko City Council RetirementFebruary 4, 2013
Springfield Upbeat
Retirement Recognition of K9 Bronko
• Bronko began his career at the Springfield Police Department in March, 2007.
• He was imported from Germany and purchased from a kennel in California thanks to a
generous donation from Millie Cray, a long time resident and huge supporter of the
Springfield K-9 Unit.
• In almost six years of service Bronko had about 145 captures including some that were
for surrounding agencies.
• Bronko was also responsible for the recovery of over $26,000 in property.
• Bronko is now ten years old and looking forward to retirement.
• His career was filled with exciting captures, public demonstrations ranging from
elementary schools to the local colleges, and several K-9 competitions in Oregon.
Bronko won first place in four straight competitions.
• Bronko’s ability to track bad guys led to some memorable captures:
Early in his career, Bronko had tremendous success locating suspects. In one of
his first captures, he was able to track two suspects who committed a robbery
with a gun. The subjects were located two blocks away with the gun and the
money.
One of Bronko’s best captures came in the last few months of his career while
assisting the Eugene Police Department. Two men broke into a house in an
attempt to rob the home owner. A shootout between the resident and the bad
guys led to one suspect being fatally injured while the second suspect fled the
area. After a lengthy track through a residential area and into the woods, Bronko
was able to locate the suspect involved in the shooting who was hiding under
thick brush where he could not be seen by officers.
• Bronko never hesitated to protect his handler, Officer Keetle, and he never turned down
getting attention from anyone between 3 and 103 years old. After a great capture,
Bronko’s favorite reward was always a piece of bacon from Addi’s Diner!
• Bronko will be missed by the police department but he has earned a peaceful retirement
at the home of Officer Keetle and his wife.