Born in Gwalior, had rank equivalent to DySP; tracker Sara's death a huge loss for dog squad

VENJARAMMOODU: Sara, the tracker of the Venjarammoodu dog squad, who found the crucial evidence that led to the arrest of the accused in the Ayirooppara Radhakrishnan murder case in Pothencode, passed away on Wednesday. The eight-year-old German Shepherd died of kidney disease.

Sara, born in Gwalior, underwent training with the BSF before joining the Kerala Police's Venjarammoodu dog squad seven years ago. She showed physical discomfort three days ago. After a medical examination, it was found that her kidneys were damaged. She died on Wednesday morning while undergoing treatment.

Sara had achieved a remarkable rank equivalent to that of a DySP, showcasing her valuable contributions to the department. Two other dogs born with Sara are also in the dog squad of the Kerala Police. Dog handlers Dhanesh and Manoj of the Venjarammoodu police force were in charge of Sara. - Sara, was so devoted to her handlers that she would only eat food served by them, refusing even her favourite treats from anyone else.

Sara's favourite pastime was playing with a tennis ball. She had received three good service entries. The funeral took place with official honours at 1.30 pm yesterday after the post-mortem. Rural SP Kiran Narayan, Attingal DySP N. Manjunath and Venjarammoodu Police Inspector Anoop Krishna took part in the ceremony.

Ran two and half kilometres to find evidence
Sara had run two and a half kilometres sniffing around to find the bloody clothes and the machete used by the accused in the Radhakrishnan murder case. The police had recommended a reward for Sara's brilliance. She had played a vital role in solving many cases in Venjarammoodu, Pothencode and Attingal police stations.