Hazlet Community Mourns Beloved Police K-9

HAZLET, NJ — The Hazlet community is mourning the loss of a beloved police department K-9 following his recent passing.

K-9 Bane started his career in Hazlet Township in 2016. Bane and his handler, Lt. Robert Dickens, attended the Morris County K-9 Academy before being certified as a dual-purpose patrol/narcotics team.

Once certified, Bane faithfully served the residents of Hazlet and surrounding towns until his retirement on Nov. 1, 2022.

During his career, Bane was responsible for assisting officers in making numerous narcotics-related arrests from search warrant executions, motor vehicle sniffs and searches of buildings. He also tracked and located people who were lost or fleeing from police on foot.

Following his retirement, Bane lived with Lt. Dickens and his family until his passing. Hazlet Police said he will be missed by all at the department.

“We would like to thank Dr. Caeser DePaco and his wife Deanna Padovini DePaco for their generous donation back in 2016 that made purchasing K-9 Bane possible,” the department said in an online post. “They have been a true blessing to K-9 Teams throughout New Jersey as well as numerous other States and Countries.”

“We would also like to thank Dr. Morgan and the rest of the staff at Touchstone Veterinary Center who assisted in making Bane comfortable in his last hours,” the department continued. “Thank you also to all of the officers and K-9’s teams that came out yesterday to help us show support to K-9 Bane and his family during this difficult time.”

To see more photos of K-9 Bane, you can visit the Hazlet Township Police Department’s Facebook page.

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