How Euclid's new K-9 honors fallen officer Jacob Derbin's legacy
EUCLID, Ohio (WJW) – A 14-month-old K-9 named Chinook is officially in training with the Euclid Police Department, but his mission is anything but routine.
Chinook is a tribute to fallen officer Jacob Derbin, who was shot and killed in the line of duty one year ago. At just 23 years old, Derbin had dreamed of becoming a K-9 handler—an ambition cut short far too soon.
Now, that dream is being fulfilled in his honor.
Child found dead after Fremont train crash; toddler hospitalized; 2 women dead
Chinook, a Belgian Malinois-German Shepherd mix, will be trained to detect illegal firearms—an intentional decision, considering Derbin was killed by gun violence.
The dog's training is being led by officer Jeremy Puszakowski, who said carrying out Derbin's legacy is both humbling and deeply personal.
'There is a lot of expectations and I am going to hold us to a high standard,' Puszakowski said. 'But I am just honored to represent Jacob in this way.'
Chinook's name carries special meaning. It comes from the Chinook helicopters Derbin worked on while serving with the Ohio National Guard in Kuwait.
But perhaps what makes this tribute the most powerful is who helped bring it to life: Derbin's father, Vince, a longtime K-9 handler for the Euclid Police Department.
He worked alongside Sgt. John Lally and the VFR Foundation to select the dog, coordinate the training and ensure his son's vision became reality.
'Be it the planning with VFR, the handler selection—but him specifically working with the dog and picking the dog,' Sgt. Lally said. 'This is what he wanted, and it's in honor of his son.'
Memorial Day Weekend travel expected to break 20-year record
Just weeks after Derbin's death, the VFR Foundation stepped in. Once they heard he had hoped to become a K-9 officer, they donated Chinook to the Euclid Police Department.
'The city will benefit, the department will benefit, the community benefits,' said David Knott with the VFR Foundation.
Over the next six weeks, Chinook and officer Puszakowski will train side-by-side, forming the bond every K-9 team relies on. Once certified, Chinook will be the department's fourth K-9 officer.
But he'll be the first with a mission this personal.
Every time he hits the streets, every time he finds a gun, it will be in honor of a young officer who never got the chance but whose legacy is now built to last.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
7 hours ago
Man once convicted in Minnesota of supporting al-Qaida is now charged in Canada for alleged threats
MONTREAL -- A man who was once convicted in the United States of supporting al-Qaida has been charged in Canada after allegedly threatening an attack. Mohammed Abdullah Warsame, 51, allegedly told a homeless shelter employee in Montreal that he wanted to build bombs to detonate on public transit. He was charged with uttering threats. He was ordered at a court appearance in Montreal on Friday to undergo a 30-day psychological assessment and return to court July 7, according to the newspaper La Presse. 'Both parties have reason to believe that Mr. Warsame's criminal responsibility is in question in this case,' Vincent Petit, who represents Warsame, told the court. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police confirmed that he is the same Mohammed Warsame who spent 5½ years in solitary confinement before pleading guilty in Minnesota in 2009 to one count of conspiracy to provide material support and resources to al-Qaida, which the U.S. calls a terrorist organization that was responsible for the 9/11 attacks. Warsame was sentenced to seven years and eight months in federal prison with credit for time served. He was deported to Canada in 2010 and had no fixed address at the time of the latest alleged incident. The Old Mission Brewery, which runs several homeless shelters in Montreal, contacted police after Warsame allegedly said on May 27 that he wanted to carry out an attack that would kill a large number of people. Warsame was hospitalized for psychiatric reasons, and he was formally arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police on Wednesday. The Somali-born Canadian citizen admitted in his 2009 plea agreement that he traveled to Afghanistan in 2000 to attend al-Qaida training camps, where he dined with the organization's founder, Osama bin Laden. Prosecutors say he later sent money to one of his training camp commanders and went to the Taliban's front line. Warsame later settled in Minneapolis, where he continued to provide information to al-Qaida associates. Prosecutors painted him as a jihadist who called his time in one training camp 'one of the greatest experiences' of his life. They said that even after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, he passed along information to al-Qaida operatives about border entries and whereabouts of jihadists — and only stopped when he was arrested in December 2003. But his attorneys depicted him as a bumbling idealist whom other fighters in the camps in Afghanistan viewed as ineffective and awkward. Warsame's case took unusually long to work through the U.S. court system partly because everyone — including the judge, defense attorneys and prosecutors — needed security clearances. Retired agent Harry Samit, who was the lead FBI investigator on the case and is now director of special investigations for the professional assessment company Pearson VUE in Bloomington, recalled in an interview Friday that Warsame's case was the second major al-Qaida case to break in Minnesota. It came after that of Zacarias Moussaoui, who took flight simulator training in Minnesota and remains the only person to stand trial in a U.S. court in the 9/11 attacks. Moussaoui was jailed on an immigration violation when hijacked planes slammed into the World Trade Center and Pentagon and crashed in a Pennsylvania field. Samit, whose books on the Minnesota cases will be published starting this summer, said the FBI got word as it was preparing for Moussaoui to stand trial that another al-Qaida operative was in Minneapolis. He said he is certain that Warsame was a sleeper agent who was waiting for instructions from his commanders before he was found. While Warsame was 'kind of a goofy, not very threatening guy,' Samit said, he and other agents who questioned him also concluded that he was 'pure of heart and he was dedicated to the cause.' He said that was apparently enough for al-Qaida leaders who sent him Minnesota, where at a minimum they used him to raise money. When Warsame was deported, the retired agent said, the FBI gave Canadian authorities a 'full accounting' of what it knew and why the bureau still considered him a threat. So he said wasn't surprised to learn this week, after all these years, that Warsame might still remain a danger to society.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
APD: K-9 killed by ‘friendly' fire during SWAT standoff
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – KRQE News 13 has learned the Albuquerque police dog that died in the line of duty last week was killed with friendly fire. 'You know, our canines are here to save and preserve human life. They are here to preserve human life, both of suspects and officers. And this was a difficult situation like mayor said, you know, he did lose his life to friendly fire,' said Albuquerque Police Department Chief Harold Medina. VIDEO: Police interview suspects in fatal robbery involving teens in Albuquerque Chief Medina made that statement Friday morning during a fundraiser announcement honoring Rebel, the K-9 shot and killed at the Comfort Suites near the Albuquerque International Sunport on May 29. Police were trying to arrest 39-year-old Jorge Dominguez, who had fled from a SWAT standoff earlier in the week. Police said Dominguez, armed with a loaded gun, tried to flee again from the hotel when he was spotted, ran back into his room, and jumped out a window. SWAT officers then deployed the rebel. Gunshots rang out at some point, and Rebel was hit. Dominguez was also killed. APD said while it's still early in the investigation, they do not have any evidence at this point that Dominguez fired his gun. 'As we get closer, we will be able to explain and show the specific dynamics that were occurring that day that really limited our officers and their response to this situation,' said Chief Medina. To honor Rebel, the Sandia Peak Tramway will donate $1 from every ticket purchase to APD's K-9 Unit. The city said those funds will go toward a new training facility near Daniel Webster Park. The facility will be named after K-9 Rebel. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Yahoo
Elmira police bring back K-9 program after receiving funding
ELMIRA, N.Y. (WETM)— The Elmira Police Department is bringing back its K-9 program for the first time in over ten years after the Elmira City Council approved funding. The department will receive $122,095 in funding from the county. The funds will go towards the K-9 and other handler fees. 'The dog ranges between fifteen and sixteen thousand dollars, which seems to be the going rate, and then a new patroling vehicle. You're looking at forty-five to fifteen thousand dollars for that. There are those fees and then the handler training fee, and then all of the little things that go with it,' said Kristen Thorne, Elmira Police Department Chief. Corning Farmers Market kicks off first day of season Chief Thorne hopes that everything will be up and running by the end of 2025. 'I'm in the process of trying to get the bids and trying to find the place that we're going to buy it from, so when that happens, most of them it takes a couple of months to do the training on the dog,' said Thorne. The K-9s will be able to help sniff out drugs and complete tasks to help the department. Bikers urged to follow traffic laws and safety tips 'We are looking to get a dual-purpose dog so he or she will be able to do tracking, building searches, article searches, and then search for narcotics,' said Thorne.' Fentanyl, methenamine, cocaine, we do not test for obviously marijuana anymore, you know, because marijuana is legal now, so the dog won't be trained on that,' he said. Chief Thorne is currently in the process of choosing a K-9 to add to the department. 'I've reached out to several kennels, I have one in mind. There have been a lot of dogs in surrounding agencies that have come from this kennel, so that's what I would like to do, but that has not been cemented in stone as of yet,' said Thorne. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
