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ROMEOVILLE – The Romeoville Police Department consists of brave men, women and one dog. Meet Spike, a male Belgian Malinois from Nijnsel in the Netherlands.
He came to the U.S. in 2011 and, in June 2012, when he was 19 months old, was paired with officer John Allen and sent to the K-9 academy.
In the five years Spike and Allen have been patrolling Romeoville, they’ve had a string of successes. Spike has been a part of numerous drug seizures and criminal apprehensions and has even found seven guns.
His biggest catch, both in terms of monetary value and total weight, however, came in June 2013 when he discovered 2,750 pounds of marijuana, valued at $7.3 million. When he’s out in the field, Spike responds to commands from Allen in Dutch.
When Spike isn’t sniffing out drugs or chasing bad guys, he resides at home with Allen. Spike loves to swim and enjoys popcorn, apples and raw corn on the cob. Spike will be 7 years old in October and still is in great shape. Allen hopes to keep him in the field for another four to five years. Once it’s time for retirement, Spike will be able to transition from Allen’s full-time partner to his full-time pet.