The one-year-old Black Lab from South Dakota just graduated from McDonough K9 training last week.

The LSDVCTF says they have wanted a single-purpose narcotics K9 for a number of years, and a federal grant made that dream a reality. K9 Maverick is the first K9 officer in the task force's history.

"The Lake Superior Drug and Violent Crime Task Force are funded through a number of federal and state grants," said Lieutenant Chad Nagorski, Task Force Commander. "One federal grant we were able to secure is the High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area grant, which will pay for all of K9 Maverick's expenses."

Investigator Stutsman will be K9 Maverick's handler. She has been part of the LSDVCTF for three and a half years, and with the Duluth Police Department for nearly 10 years.

"I feel extremely proud to be a part of the Lake Superior Drug and Violent Crime Task Force and am very excited to add Maverick to our team," said Investigator Stutsman. We look forward to putting our training to work and forwarding our mission of removing harmful substances from the streets."

K9 Maverick is considered a regional task force asset and will be available to LSDVCTF partner agencies. His first day on the job was on Monday, June 27.

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