CEDAR CITY — When working for law enforcement, he could pick up the scent of drugs when officers could not. He had the ability to make suspects in criminal cases stop resisting arrest when nothing else would, even a taser. And he possessed the strength to endure several city council meetings, where he was doted on by city officials.

On Tuesday, the Cedar City Police Department announced law enforcement K-9 Duco died from natural causes after more than seven years serving on the force. St. George News spoke with two officers who worked side-by-side with the Belgian Malinois, who quickly became a community favorite at police-sponsored community events.

Duco joined the Cedar City Police Department in 2015, working with Lt. Clint Pollock. In March of that year, the Utah Highway Patrol requested assistance from a K-9 officer and 14 pounds of methamphetamine was removed from Interstate 15 as a result.

While this was his first “bust,” hundreds of pounds of drugs would follow. Pollock explained that many times an officer can become suspicious when a suspect has malfunctioning lights, appears intoxicated or is jittery when questioned. Still, other suspected criminals are not anxious, they have travel plans and they do not appear intoxicated.

Duco relied only on his senses, he said. According to research published by the University of Adelaide in Australia, under perfect conditions, a Belgian Malinois can pick up a scent from more than 12 miles away. Pollock noted that meth wrapped airtight in plastic, sealed inside a spare tire, inflated and reinstalled, then covered with luggage to make it look like a trip, never fooled Duco.

“Without his nose, we would have never found it,” Pollock said, recalling an arrest that removed another 9 pounds of meth from city streets.

Duco assisted officers in many surrounding departments if a call came through. And illegal substances weren’t the only thing he was good at finding. Sometimes suspected criminals would run and hide, in tight places, sometimes with weapons, with officers trying to end the situation safely for everyone.

“One that stands out to me, we had one suspect who was hiding in an attic, buried in insulation, in a very tight space,” Pollock said. “We utilized Duco, who charged in and confronted the suspect. He was armed with a knife, which we did not know at the time, and an arrest was made. Had we sent an officer in, this could have ended very differently.”

During his last years on duty, Duco partnered with Cpl. Bryan Moore patrolling the streets of Cedar City. Known for fearlessly jumping from helicopters during community events, he also was known and feared by those committing crimes, Moore said.

While police routinely face aggression and resistance from those suspected of committing a crime, Duco had much less of a problem.

“We call them apprehensions without bites,” Moore said. “Even me, being the size I am, people want to fight me frequently, at times. Anytime the dog was there, they would surrender.”

While not on patrol, Duco liked to be “everyone’s friend” and would walk around the department and visit other officers, while waiting patiently for Moore to finish paperwork.

“Everyone thinks of police dogs as aggressive, but that was not Duco,” Moore said. “He loved to be petted and was always great with my kids.”

After taking on the role of Duco’s handler, Moore said his family accepted the K-9 as one of their own. Although his official retirement from police-related duties ended in August 2021, he never stopped providing moral support by coming into the office whenever he could. The Cedar City Police Department as a whole is feeling the loss.

“A lot of the texts are saying, just what a good guy he was,” Moore said of the messages from fellow officers. “My daughter is probably the one taking this the hardest, she grew up with him.”

Though there will be no funeral services for Duco, Friends of the Iron County Police K-9 treasurer Bruce Hughes said the group is currently working to add his name to the K-9 memorial at the Cedar City cemetery.

“Every police K-9 who dies in this community has their name added to the memorial, regardless of whether they are on duty,” Hughes said. “We honor their service and Duco’s name is coming.”

Pollock said the Cedar City Police Department has been overwhelmed by the compassion shown by the community, just in time to be interrupted by a Samaritan passing out gift cards for sandwiches. He now realizes just how important Duco was to those who met him at community events.

“I don’t think of it as just a police department K-9 thing — it is a community thing,” he said. “The outreach and support the community has provided, that support goes a long way for our community. We truly appreciate it, because there is so much more than the K-9, the handler and the family. It’s the community that helps bring that positive light with us and our dogs.”

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