Darien Police Officer Amanda Hinkley and the K-9 she handles, Argo, a German shepard

Darien Police K-9 Team — Argo and Handler, Officer Hinkley — Now Certified to Catch Fleeing Suspects

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Criminals beware: Argo, one of two Darien Police Department canines, already trained and certified both to sniff out narcotics and track suspects, now has a new crime-fighting skill. Now the dog and his handler, K-9 Officer Amanda Hinkley, have been certified in “apprehension work” as well, Police Chief Ray Osborne recently told the Police Commission. “And when you say ‘apprehension work’ you mean going after the, ah —” Commission Chairman J. Paul Johnson began to ask. “That means he can tackle the bad guy,” Osborne said. Osborne explained that Argo was young when he became a police K-9 in the department (back in 2016), “so we needed to put a little bit of experience and get a little age on him before we were comfortable certifying him in apprehension work, as well.”

K-9 Argo Police Dog Darien Police vest

Darien Police Dog Argo Gets Gift of a Protective Vest

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A nonprofit organization has donated a protective vest to Darien Police Department for Argo, one of the department’s two police dogs. The vest, donated by an anonymous sponsor through the nonprofit Vested Interest in K9s Inc., can help protect Argo from bullet or stab wounds. The charity, headquartered in East Taunton, MA, was set up to provide protective vests for police dogs in law enforcement and similar agencies across the United States. Since it was started in 2009, the organization has provided over 3,000 protective vests in 50 states, through private and corporate donations. The vests are valued at a total of $5.7 million.