Written by: Amanda Blake
The Collegedale Police Department (CPD) recently welcomed another furry addition to its K-9 program: a 2-year-old Belgian Malinois from Hungary named Maxim.
Since joining the agency in November, Maxim has assisted with at least 13 major drug arrests, according to his partner, Officer Shawn Lewis. In fact, on Wednesday, Jan. 24, Maxim alerted officers to the presence of narcotics in a vehicle on Hickory Valley Road, as reported by The Chattanoogan. Police found methamphetamine, marijuana and drug paraphernalia in the vehicle.
Lewis and Officer Derrick Saxe, another CPD canine handler, spoke about their experiences in the K-9 program with the Accent through email communication facilitated by Assistant Chief of Police Jamie Heath.
“He barks at anyone that walks by the patrol car, as well as deer and orange construction barrels while we drive by.”
Saxe is partnered with Krino, also a Belgian Malinois. The two have been working together for five years.
According to a November CPD press release, the Belgian Malinois is historically a herding dog, eager to please and a loyal protector of its family — all traits that make it an excellent choice for police and military K-9 duty. Often mistaken for the German Shepherd breed, the Malinois canine, also known as a Belgian Shepherd, is leaner and more energetic. The latter trait is certainly present in Maxim and Krino, based on Lewis’ and Saxe’s descriptions of their four-legged partners.
“Maxim is full of energy and loves to work. He enjoys playing tug-of-war with me,” Lewis wrote. “He barks at anyone that walks by the patrol car, as well as deer and orange construction barrels while we drive by.”
He added that individuals are welcome to interact with him and Maxim when they’re working a shift. Additionally, schools and community organizations can schedule meet-and-greets or demonstrations with the CPD K-9 units.
Saxe described his partner’s eager behavior when the team arrives at the department to start a shift: “Krino runs around the patrol parking lot, begging (overly exaggerated) all the officers for attention and smelling all the new smells around the place that weren’t there his last shift.”
In the email, Saxe stated that he and Krino are looking forward to warmer weather, as requests for canine response calls are not as common in winter.
After five years of inactivity, the CPD revived its K-9 program in September of 2022 by introducing Goose, a German Shorthaired Pointer, to the agency, according to a previous Accent article. Goose has since retired from the CPD.
“Goose decided that police work wasn’t for him, and he is now living his best life as a private canine citizen with his former partner Casey Shell, who is also no longer with this agency,” Heath wrote to the Accent.
The City of Collegedale website states that the agency’s K-9 units are trained to patrol and detect narcotics. Heath stated that both K-9 teams have done excellent work supporting the agency’s patrol officers, as well as officers from nearby police departments.
“Their great work has removed dangerous drugs from the streets and put criminals behind bars,” he added. “We’re very proud of the job these teams do and look forward to working more with them over the next several years.”
Reporter Emma Boughman contributed to this article.
