Police officers from the Illawarra and South Coast regions are among those in mourning following the mysterious death of a police dog over the Christmas/New Year period.
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Officers attached to the NSW Dog Unit, Mounted Unit and Tactical Operations Unit formed a guard of honour to farewell serving Police Dog Dravec, who died on Boxing Day.
PD Dravec died while off-duty and a cause of death is still being determined. He was five.
PD Dravec spent the majority of his service working in the Wollongong/Illawarra/South Coast regions. He had also worked alongside the Tactical Operations Unit on a wide range of jobs across NSW.
PD Dravec, a Belgian Malinois, commenced service with the Dog Unit in 2017. He was accredited as a General Purpose Dog in April 2018, and also accredited as a Public Order Dog and as a Tactical Dog.
The NSW Police Force has offered its deepest sympathies to PD Dravec's partner and the Police Dog Unit as a whole.
Both the Police Dog Unit and NSW Police Force have shared tributes to PD Dravec on their Facebook pages on Monday.
A NSW Police Force spokeswoman said no further details would be supplied due to "operational reasons".
The NSW Police Dog Unit was formed in 1932 and provides a support service for all operational police in NSW.
Specialist canine services include general purpose, drug, firearms/explosive detection and human remains dogs.
NSW Police Dogs are considered among the best in the world.
The unit uses various dog breeds, including German Shepherd, Labrador, Rottweiler, Malinois, and is introducing English Springer Spaniels.
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Merryn Porter
Journalist with more than 25 years' experience in print and digital media who has covered most news rounds, including health, education, politics (local, state and federal), police and courts, with a special interest in women's and family matters. Highly-skilled interviewer and storyteller.
Journalist with more than 25 years' experience in print and digital media who has covered most news rounds, including health, education, politics (local, state and federal), police and courts, with a special interest in women's and family matters. Highly-skilled interviewer and storyteller.
