A K-9 team from the Essex County Sheriff’s Office, aided by “Mac,” a bloodhound and three-year veteran of the department, found a 15-year-old girl who had wandered off from a city school Thursday afternoon.
The student, who suffers from epilepsy, was last seen at North Star Academy on Clinton Avenue. Newark police contacted the sheriff’s office around 4 pm and requested the assistance of the K-9 unit.
Detective Tahir Brown was advised that the female student has a history of wandering away.
Mac obtained a scent from the girl’s jacket, which had been left behind in her classroom. Mac tracked west on Clinton Avenue to Ingraham Place and finally to Van Ness Place, where the child was discovered lying unconscious on the ground.
“Our canines are invaluable to our department and our community,” Sheriff Armando Fontoura said. “This incident could have resulted in tragedy if it were not for Mac and his handler, Detective Brown.”
The girl was taken to Newark Beth Israel Medical Center.
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