Scent Evidence K9 TOP DOGS (and Handlers) of 2025!

December 31, 2025 scentevidencek9

Scent Evidence K9 TOP DOGS (and Handlers) of 2025!

2025 was a monumental year for Scent Evidence K9 and our law enforcement and community Bringing The Lost Home Program partners. 44 handlers from 9 states (FL, TN, GA, CA, WI, MO, NC, UT, NY) and British Columbia reported 187 finds to us via our deployment report form. 113 were missing person recoveries and 74 were criminal suspect locations. The amazing scent discriminate K9 trailing work by our partners helped us reach several important milestones in 2025. Our handlers across the country and Canada surpassed the 1000 Find mark and our Florida Bringing The Lost Home partners are nearing 600 statewide finds! Scent Evidence K9 trained Bloodhounds achieved 2 Top Awards in 2025. The AKC ACE Award – Uniformed Services K9 Division (K9 Keva – San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Dept., CA) and the Jimmy Ryce Trailing Team of the Year Award (Dep. Robert Mata and K9 Indy – Sumter County Sheriff’s Office, FL) This is the second time Scent Evidence K9 Bloodhounds have won both prestigious honors.

K9 Trailing Superstars Master Dep. Angela Keller/K9 Wyatt from Orange County Sheriff’s Office (FL) led the pack again in 2025 with an impressive 23 finds in 2025. Congrats to MD Keller and K9 Wyatt for repeating their first-place success from 2024 with another outstanding year of locating missing persons and suspects. Angela and Wyatt’s commitment to trailing excellence have been recognized by news agencies across Florida in 2025!

Here is the full Top Dog (and Handlers) 2025 list of top performing Scent Evidence K9 partner K9 Teams.

1. Angela Keller/K9 Wyatt – 23 – Orange County Sheriff’s Office, FL

2. Steven Sella/K9 Zoe and K9 Maverick – 11 – Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, FL

2. Josh Pressley/K9 Becka – 11 – Banks County Sheriff’s Office, GA

3. Kathryn Touchstone/K9 Buster – 10 – Escambia Co Sheriff’s Office

4. Glen Pedersen/K9 Honey – 9 – New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office, NC

4. Benjamin Herron/K9 Doc – 9 – Osceola County Sheriff’s Office, FL

5. Gabriel Jasso/K9 Keva – 8 – San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Dept., CA

6. Anthony Yannuzzi/K9 Patriot – 7 – Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, FL

6. John Smith/K9 Oti – 7 – Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office, NC

6. Lewis Kurtz/K9 Rex – 7 – Leon County Sheriff’s Office, FL

7. Josiah Tegg/K9 Scout – 6 – Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, MO

7. Melanie Merritt/K9 Daisy Mae – 6 – St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office, FL

7. Adam Depew/K9 Daryl – 6 – Jonesborough Police Dept., TN

8. Andrew Cason/K9 Belle – 4 – Kissimmee Police Dept., FL

8. Dylan Morrill/ K9 Kopper – 4 – Arcadia Police Dept., CA

8. Andrew Nichter/K9 Taro – 4 – Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office, GA

9. Adam Moss/K9 Rusty – 3 – Elbert County Sheriff’s Office, GA

9. Thomas McGeshick/K9 Cleo – 3 – Sokaogon Chippewa Community PD, WI

9. Brian Neary/K9 Galli – 3 – Rockland County Sheriff’s Office, NY

9. Emmett Merritt/K9 Gracie – 3 – Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, FL

9. Corbyn Lyman/K9 Tank – 3 – Uintah County Sheriff’s Office, UT

9. Derek Richard/K9 Zeus – 3 – Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, FL

We appreciate and congratulate all of our K9 handler partners for their hard work to bring the lost home and create safer communities. Thank you for all you do! Many lives were saved in 2025 because of your efforts!

Here are just a few of the amazing K9 trailing highlights from 2025! Follow our Facebook and Instagram pages to check out the upcoming K9 finds in 2026.

Scent Evidence K9 Partners Reach 1000 Find Milestone!

2025’s Top Dog and Handler Master Deputy Angela Keller and K9 Wyatt from Orange County Sheriff’s Office reported the 1000th find by our incredible Scent Evidence K9 partners with their latest missing person deployment on 11/8/25. K9 Wyatt, a scent discriminate Bloodhound, was trained by Scent Evidence K9 and donated to OCSO by our Florida Bringing The Lost Home partners Senior Resource Alliance in Orlando. The Orange County Sheriff’s Office Bloodhound Team was recently featured on WFTV in October for their exemplary trailing work. Read the article HERE.
“Master Dep. Keller and K9 Wyatt are setting the bar high and inspiring other handlers by consistently utilizing their advanced K9 trailing techniques to saves lives and protect the community. Orange County Sheriff’s Office and Senior Resource Alliance are the benchmark for how partnerships between law enforcement agencies and community organizations work to provide a high level of success in locating missing or wandering persons,” stated Scent Evidence K9 CEO, Paul Coley.

Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office Bloodhound Team Locates Person Missing from Crash Scene!

Cpl. Steven Sella and K9 Zoe, a Scent Evidence K9 trained Bloodhound, responded to help locate a passenger that was missing from a rollover vehicle crash. Units had responded to the crash site earlier and transported the driver to the hospital. No passenger was initially reported or found at the scene. The driver later advised that his girlfriend had been with him during the crash. Due to the severity of the crash and concern for an injured party potentially unaccounted for, deputies responded to the couple’s residence, but no one answered the door. Cpl. Sella used the absorption method to collect a scent article from a single female shoe that was found in the passenger side floorboard of the vehicle. Sella presented the Scent Kit jar to K9 Zoe and deployed from the crash scene. Zoe trailed 1.6 miles directly to the couple’s residence. Upon arrival, deputies observed fresh blood on the back door. After multiple knocks, a female answered the door displaying injuries consistent with involvement in the crash. K9 Zoe successfully located the involved passenger, leading to confirmation of her welfare and further investigation.

Banks County Sheriff’s Office Bloodhound Team Locate Assault Suspect Who Stole ATV!

Cpl. Josh Pressley and K9 Becka – Banks County Sheriff’s Office

Cpl. Josh Pressley and K9 Becka, a Scent Evidence K9 trained Bloodhound, responded to assist Habersham County in locating a man suspected of aggravated assault on law enforcement. Pressley used The SEKR Scent Evidence Vacuum to collect a scent article and deployed K9 Becka. The Georgia Bloodhound Team trailed 3 miles through a dense wooded area. It was determined that the suspect had stolen an ATV and escaped the area. Cpl. Pressley and K9 Becka returned the next day to resume the search, this time using a scent article from the helmet the suspect was seen wearing. K9 Becka trailed 150 feet to a camper with a broken window. The suspect was found inside the camper and taken into custody by an apprehension K9 team running tandem during the trail.
Cpl. Pressley is a Scent Evidence K9 Master Handler and he and K9 Becka have almost 70 missing person recoveries and suspect locations since completing their scent discriminate training with us in early 2022. Ironically, the Georgia Bloodhound Team’s first find involved locating an 87-year-old man who had fallen off his ATV in the woods and couldn’t get back up.

Deputies use K9 Scent Kit to find missing man with disabilities in Escambia County.

Dep. Touchstone and K9 Buster - Escambia County Sheriff's Office Florida — Dep. Touchstone and K9 Buster – Escambia County Sheriff’s Office Florida

Great News Story on ABC 3 WEAR about Deputy Kathryn Touchstone and K9 Buster’s latest trail to help locate a missing endangered man. ECSO has been a Bringing The Lost Home Program agency for several year’s now and Dep. Touchstone and K9 Buster have many missing person recoveries to their credit!

New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office Bloodhound Team Uses SEKR to Confirm Trail of Man Missing for 36 Hours!

Master Deputy Glen Pedersen and K9 Honey - New Hanover County Sheriff's Office — Master Deputy Glen Pedersen and K9 Honey – New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office

Master Deputy Glen Pedersen and K9 Honey, a Scent Evidence K9 trained Bloodhound, responded on Sunday 10/12/25 to help locate a man who had been missing since Friday. MD Pedersen used the SEKR Scent Evidence Vacuum to collect a scent article from the man’s shoes and presented the scent jar to K9 Honey. The North Carolina Bloodhound Team trailed from the residence down a dirt road with power lines and knee-deep water. They trailed .25 miles to the train tracks where deputies received intel that a cellular ping indicated that the subject had been in that area on Friday night. Intel was then received that the subject had been picked up from the area where K9 Honey was trailing. The man was located 200 miles away safe. The New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office Bloodhound Team trailed a total of 1.5 miles.

“Master Deputy Pedersen used the SEKR to collect an effective scent article that was utilized to confirm a trail that was 36 hours old. K9 Honey successfully followed the aged trail to help responders determine that they were searching in the right area,” stated Scent Evidence K9 CEO, Paul Coley.

K9 Keva Wins 2025 AKC Award for Canine Excellence (ACE) – Uniformed Services K-9 Division

K9 Keva and Dep. Gabe Jasso - San Bernardino County Sheriff's Dept. — K9 Keva and Dep. Gabe Jasso – San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Dept. win Top AKC Award

Human scent discriminate trailing AKC Bloodhound, Keva, is 3 years old and a highly productive member of the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department K9 Unit. Keva and handler Deputy Gabriel Jasso have an amazing 48 missing person recoveries and criminal suspect locations in just 2+ years on the job. Keva was only 8 months old when she located an 83-year-old missing person with dementia on her very first search deployment after completing training with Scent Evidence K9 in Tallahassee. The man had wandered away and been missing for 18 hours. Keva racked up 7 successful K9 searches at only 9 months old. Dep. Jasso and Keva have also worked cases for several police departments and law enforcement agencies in Southern California.

Jacksonville Bloodhound Team Locates Missing Endangered 9-Year-Old for Find #20!

Jacksonville PD Bloodhound Team Finds Missing Endangered 10-Year-Old! — Dep. Anthony Yannuzzi and K9 Patriot – Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office

Dep. Anthony Yannuzzi and K9 Patriot of Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office responded to help locate a missing endangered child who was last seen 3 hours prior to their arrival on the scene. Dep. Yannuzzi collected a scent article from the child’s shoes and deployed K9 Patriot. The scent discriminate Bloodhound trailed into a wooded area at the end of the neighborhood and continued to the backyard of a residence where a witness observed the missing child emerging 20 minutes earlier from the same spot as the K9 Team. K9 Patriot continued trailing through the neighborhood, crossing several roads along the way. A citizen reported a possible sighting of the missing child at a house just ahead and K9 Patriot trailed directly to that area and showed proximity. The Florida Bloodhound Team began to search the pond area when K9 Patriot dove into a bush and located the missing child hiding from them. The child was safely recovered and returned to his family. K9 Patriot was rewarded with verbal praise and his favorite toy.
This is the 20th find for the Jacksonville Bloodhound Team. Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office is a Florida Bringing The Lost Home Program partner and they do a fantastic job of creating community missing person resource awareness. K9 Patriot got a special treat for his 20th find, a salmon sushi platter!!!!

East Tennessee Bloodhound Team Uses SEKR Vacuum to Locate Missing Endangered 25-year-old!

Jonesboro PD Bloodhound Team Uses SEKR to Locate Evidence and Suspect — Ofc. Adam Depew and K9 Daryl – Jonesborough Police Dept. – TN

Ofc. Adam Depew and K9 Daryl, a Scent Evidence K9 Bloodhound, responded to help locate a missing endangered 25-year-old this week. Ofc. Depew and K9 Daryl deployed in tandem with Cpl. Webb Washington and K9 Arlo from Washington County Sheriff’s Office. Ofc. Depew used the SEKR Scent Evidence Vacuum to collect a scent article and deployed. The person had been missing for 9 hours. The Tennessee K9 Teams alternated trailing the missing person for 4 miles before locating them in Downtown Jonesboro.
“Ofc. Depew used The SEKR to get an effective scent article before deploying and the partnership with Cpl. Washington at the WCSO allowed the K9s to trail farther in the high temps. They had a great start and great teamwork, which resulted in a great finish,” stated Scent Evidence K9 CEO, Paul Coley.

Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office K9 Team Locates Crash Suspect

Dep. John Smith and K9 Oti - Brunswick County Sheriff's Office — Dep. John Smith and K9 Oti – Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office

Dep. John Smith and K9 Oti responded to the scene of a wreck on 10/25/25. Upon arrival, they were advised that the suspect had taken off and was running through people’s yards. Dep. Smith deployed K9 Oti from the place where the suspect was last seen. The North Carolina K9 Team used their scent discriminate trailing skills to locate the suspect hiding in the thick brush of a muddy ditch. The suspect was placed under arrest by officers at the scene. “We’re proud to train with the Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office K9 Teams. They are having a lot of trailing success and are doing a great job keeping the community safe,” stated Scent Evidence k9 CEO, Paul Coley.

K9 Daisy Mae Locates Suspect Who Bailed Out After Traffic Stop!

Dep. Melanie Merritt and K9 Daisy Mae - St. Johns County Sheriff's Office — Dep. Melanie Merritt and K9 Daisy Mae – St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office

On 8/18/25 Dep. Melanie Merritt and K9 Daisy Mae of St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office responded to help locate a suspect who bailed out after SJSO Deputies pulled over a truck for speeding. 2 passengers bailed out of the vehicle and ran into the woods. Dep. Merritt used a Scent Kit and the absorption method of scent collection to obtain a scent article and presented it to K9 Daisy. Daisy Mae trailed the scent for a mile through heavily wooded areas and water and led officers directly to one of the suspects hiding in the brush. The suspect was arrested. Check out the bodycam footage of the search on the SJSO Facebook page here!

K9 Belle Locates Missing Child in First Find for Kissimmee PD.

K9 Belle Helps Locate Missing Endangered Mother and Child — Officer Andrew Cason and K9 Belle – Kissimmee Police Dept.

Officer Andrew Cason and K9 Belle, a Scent Evidence K9 Bloodhound, located a missing endangered child on 7-21-25. The child had been missing for 1 hour and the Kissimmee Police Department Bloodhound team trailed .5 miles to locate and bring the youth home safely.
This is the first find for K9 Belle and Officer Cason since completing their scent discriminate training with Scent Evidence K9. K9 Belle and her sister K9 Duchess were donated to the Kissimmee Police Department by our Bringing The Lost Home Program partner, Senior Resource Alliance in Orlando, FL. Kissimmee PD is also a participating Florida Bringing The Lost Home Program partner agency.

Arcadia Police Dept. Bloodhound Team Confirmed Trail of Missing Runaway Youth!

Ofc Dylan Morrill and K9 Kopper - Arcadia PD — Ofc Dylan Morrill and K9 Kopper – Arcadia PD, CA

Ofc. Dylan Morrill and K9 Kopper were called to help locate a missing critical 14-year-old on 6-17-25. The youth had run away from home and did not take her cellphone. Ofc. Morrill collected a scent article from the residence and deployed K9 Kopper from the front of the apartment complex. Kopper trailed the scent approximately 300 feet to the closest bus stop and alerted, indicating that the missing youth may have taken the bus. During the investigation APD received information that the missing youth may be at a park in the City of Duarte. APD Units located the youth unharmed at the park where she confirmed she had taken the bus where K9 Kopper alerted. “Confirming the direction of travel in a missing person case is vital to placing search resources where they need to be. Ofc. Morrill and K9 Kopper did another great job establishing the missing youth’s mode of transportation,”
stated Scent Evidence K9 CEO, Paul Coley.

North Carolina K9 Team Gets 2 Finds In 1 Week!

Dep. Nichter and K9 Taro - Brunswick County Sheriff's Office NC — Dep. Nichter and K9 Taro – Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office NC

Dep. Andrew Nichter and K9 Taro of the Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office used their scent discriminate trailing skills to locate 2 suspects in separate cases on May 3 and May 10, 2025. The K9 Team responded on May 3rd to assist Leland PD in locating a suspect who fled on a bike after an attempted break in. K9 Taro quickly trailed past the abandoned bike and gave a proximity alert near the wood line. Dep. Richter gave a K9 call out and the suspect responded from the woods. Officers detained the suspect. The trail duration was 2 minutes!
A few days later on May 10, Richter and Taro responded to a wreck where the suspect had fled the vehicle. They deployed from the place where the suspect was last seen and K9 Taro tracked through mud to a gated facility showing muddy footprints going through locked gate that had been forced apart. K9 Taro tracked through the facility to the edge of woods and alerted on an army jacket. The suspect was described as wearing an army jacket. As Taro trailed from the jacket, he snapped his head to the right and began pulling hard into the woods. K9 Taro gave an immediate proximity alert and began working the area to find the suspect. K9 Taro began pulling so hard that he was walking on his 2 rear paws at one point and entered a thick wooded area. Dep. Nichter shined his light in front of K9 Taro and found the suspect laying down on his back. Commands were given to show his hands. The suspect began to snore and was not responding. The back up officer placed the suspect in handcuffs. K9 Taro was rewarded with his toy. The trail was 29 min. in duration and 1 mile in length.

K9 Galli Uses Nose to Find 2 Missing Runaway Youths and 1 Suspect!

Brian Neary and K9 Galli - Rockland County Sheriff's Office, NY — Ofc. Brian Neary and K9 Galli – Rockland County Sheriff’s Office, NY

Rockland County Sheriff’s Ofc. Brian Neary and K9 Galli, a Scent Evidence K9 Bloodhound alumnus, recently located double missing runaways and 1 suspect.

The New York Bloodhound Team responded to an apartment complex where the missing juveniles were last seen. They were reported to be in an upstairs apartment while they were charging their iPad. When the juveniles saw the police, they ran out of the apartment and down the hallway to the other side of the building. Officers checked the complex and grounds with negative results. The lead detective stated that the youth’s iPad was still connected to the apartment’s Wi-Fi, showing a 50-meter radius around the building. Ofc. Neary collected a scent article from the couch they were sitting on using a Scent Kit and the absorption method. K9 Galli trailed the scent down the stairs, checked both first floor exterior doors, then continued to the basement. Neary and Galli began working back and forth between 2 sets of storage containers in the basement. K9 Galli shoved her nose under a door and began sniffing the door jamb of one of the units. K9 Galli then alerted on the door and the 2 juveniles exited. K9 Galli then alerted on the second youth. The trail was 4 hours old and all indoors.

K9 Galli also located a suspect who crashed, jumped out of the vehicle, and ran after a failure to comply. On arrival at the scene Ofc. Neary collected a scent article using a Scent Kit and the absorption method from the driver’s seat. K9 Galli trailed just over a mile through urban and wooded areas towards a major roadway. 100 yards from the road, the Rockland County Bloodhound Team was advised that the suspect had exited the woods. K9 Galli continued trailing to the suspect and alerted for the ID. The trail took 1 hour and 32 minutes.

K9 Cleo Helps Locate Missing Runaway Youth!

Officer Thomas McGeshick and K9 Cleo of the Sokaogon Chippewa Community Police Dept. used their scent discriminate trailing and scent collection skills to help locate a missing youth in Wisconsin. The runaway youth ran into the woods after being spotted by law enforcement. Ofc. McGeshick used The SEKR Scent Evidence Vacuum to collect a scent article from the youth’s residence and deployed K9 Cleo. Cleo trailed .2 miles, and a Forest County located the missing youth half a mile ahead of their trail. K9 Cleo continued trailing to the location where the youth was waiting in a patrol car to be transported home.
The Sokaogon Chippewa Community Police Dept. was awarded The Kevin and Avonte Program: Reducing Injury and Death of Missing Individuals with Dementia and Developmental Disabilities grant in 2024. The grant provides Scent Discriminate K9 Trailing, Response Protocol training, Scent Kits and Scent Collection Technology, and Community Awareness to K9 Teams, first responders, and community organizations.

Florida Bringing The Lost Home K9 Team Uses Scent Kit To Locate Missing Endangered Elderly Person

Sgt Emmett Merritt and K9 Gracie - Putnam County Sheriff's Office, FL — Sgt. Emmett Merritt and K9 Gracie – Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, FL

Sgt. Emmett Merritt and K9 Gracie, a scent discriminate Bloodhound recently responded to a call to help locate a missing elderly person. The missing endangered person had previously wandered and had been issued a Scent Evidence K9 Scent Kit through Florida’s Bringing The Lost Home Program. Sgt. Merritt used the Scent Kit containing the pre collected odor of the missing person to deploy K9 Gracie. K9 Gracie trailed the scent for 1 mile and located the elderly person.
“Having a Scent Kit prepared in advance helps responders locate a missing person faster by giving K9 teams an uncontaminated scent article to search with. Florida’s Bringing The Lost Home Program has been providing Scent Kits at no charge to participating agencies and communities for 7 years and they are saving lives,” stated Scent Evidence K9 CEO, Paul Coley.

Georgia Bloodhound Team Uses Scent Collection Tech to Help Locate Person Missing for 7 Hours!

Capt. Adam Moss and K9 Rusty - Elbert County Sheriff's Office GA — Lt. Adam Moss and K9 Rusty – Elbert County Sheriff’s Office GA

Lt. Adam Moss and K9 Rusty of Elbert County Sheriff’s Office responded to locate a missing man. Lt. Moss used The SEKR Scent Evidence Vacuum to collect a scent article from the person’s shoes and deployed K9 Rusty, a Scent Evidence K9 trained Bloodhound, from the front porch where the family last saw him hiding under. K9 Rusty began trailing under the house but came out and circled around to the back of the house, never leaving the area. Lt. Moss tried deploying K9 Rusty multiple times, but he kept coming back to the same area of the residence. They kept searching the area near the residence and began trailing to an outbuilding of the residence. The missing man was located inside the outbuilding as the Georgia Bloodhound Team approached. It was later determined that the man was under the house and was able to get out undetected and relocate to the outbuilding.
“Searches from a residence are some of the most difficult trails to work. The person lives there and their scent is prominent. Lt. Moss did a great job in trusting that K9 Rusty was right. They nailed it!” stated Scent Evidence K9 CEO Paul Coley.
This is the third find for the Georgia Bloodhound Team since completing their scent discriminate training in August.

Scent Kits help K9 responders locate missing persons fast and bring them home safe. Visit the Scent Kit Shop HERE to learn more.

Scent Evidence K9 TOP DOGS (and Handlers) of 2025!

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