Police Scotland Pays Tribute To Police Dog Who Sniffed Out Drugs Worth $12M Throughout Career

Tributes have been paid to police dog Gizmo, who was based at Loch Ryan, Scotland, after passing away on August 08 after a period of illness.

Police Scotland Dumfries & Galloway announced the police dog’s passing on Tuesday, September 24.

According to the Police Divisions, the 11-year-old Sprocker Spaniel had a 10-year career as a police dog.

And during Gizmo’s time as a police dog, he was able to sniff out drugs worth $12 million in the area and across the country.

Aside from sniffing out drugs, Gizmo also worked at major events such as state visits, music events, and sporting events.

Gizmo was first introduced by Police Scotland on Christmas in 2014 when he just joined the border policing team at Loch Ryan Port.

In 2015, Gizmo became the successor of another amazing police dog, Buster. Buster retired after a successful career that lasted for 7 years. During Buster’s time as a police dog, he was able to detect over $7 million worth of drugs in Scotland.

In a June 2015 Facebook post, Police Scotland wrote, “One year old Gizmo is taking over Buster’s search duties – hunting for weapons, drugs, cash, stolen items and explosives. He learnt a lot from Buster in the day they spent working together.”

And after learning from the best, Gizmo went on to become one of, if not the most talented, police dog in Scotland.

In 2022 alone, Gizmo, after working with Border Police, was able to find cannabis with an estimated street value of $1.5 million at the seaports in a village in Scotland called Cairnryan.

Detective Sergeant David Hanlon said: “We are deeply saddened by the death of Police Dog Gizmo, who was a fundamental part of our team.”

“Police dogs are a crucial support in our work to keep our communities safe and deter crime.”

“Gizmo was a valued colleague, and he will be sadly missed, especially by his former handler.”