POLK COUNTY, Fla. (CBS12) — A Polk County Sheriff’s Office K9 lost his front left leg after being shot during a confrontation with a wanted man who opened fire on deputies Thursday evening, Sheriff Grady Judd said.
K9 Ace, a 7-year-old German Shepherd who has served with the agency for about six years, was wounded Aug. 6 as deputies attempted to arrest Angel Bowers in a wooded area near Kathleen.
Judd said Friday that investigators believe Bowers had been preparing for weeks to avoid returning to jail. Bowers had reportedly told his girlfriend he would not go back to jail and had set up a tent about 100 to 150 yards into thick woods on Polk County property.
Deputies located the area after a bondsman spotted Bowers’ bicycle near the woods. Around 6:15 p.m., three deputies and Ace moved toward the tent.
Ace’s handler, Deputy Natalie Oestreich, repeatedly identified herself as being with the Sheriff’s Office and ordered Bowers to come out, Judd said.
After several warnings, a man inside the tent said he had a gun and was going to shoot, according to Judd. Gunfire followed almost immediately.
Investigators believe Bowers fired at least four rounds toward the deputies and Ace. One bullet struck Ace in the left side of his chest and exited through his left shoulder, severely damaging his front leg and an artery.
Ace was bleeding heavily, and Oestreich carried him out of the woods and rushed him to Parkway Veterinary Emergency Clinic in Lakeland.
Veterinarians stopped the bleeding and stabilized Ace before Tampa General Hospital’s Aeromed helicopter transported him to the Veterinary Medical Center at Lakewood Ranch for specialized treatment.
Judd said Ace received at least two units of blood before undergoing surgery. His injuries were so severe that doctors had to amputate his front left leg. The Sheriff’s Office later said the surgery went well and Ace was stable.
Meanwhile, deputies established a perimeter around Bowers’ tent and repeatedly ordered him to surrender.
Around 8:15 p.m., SWAT members entered the tent and found Bowers dead while still holding a handgun, Judd said. An autopsy determined he died from a single gunshot wound to the head.
Investigators recovered a stolen 9mm FN handgun with an extended 24-round magazine. Judd said the gun belonged to Bowers’ girlfriend’s mother, who did not know he had taken it.
Judd credited Ace with helping protect the three deputies during the confrontation, saying the K9 was at the front of the group when Bowers began firing.
“Ace is a hero without any doubt at all,” Judd said.
Oestreich remained with Ace throughout his treatment. Judd described the relationship between handlers and their K9s as a family bond and said Ace will retire and live with Oestreich and her family.
The Wiltse Family Trust has offered to cover Ace’s treatment costs and purchase a replacement K9 for the Sheriff’s Office.
Judd also thanked the veterinarians, Aeromed crew and community members who have donated to support Ace and the agency’s K9 program.
Ace will eventually receive official recognition for his actions during the shooting, Judd said.
“I can’t measure except in three lives that he saved last night,” Judd said.