LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — A K-9 officer with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department is returning to duty nearly a month after being stabbed by an arson suspect.
In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, LVMPD confirmed that Diko was cleared to return to duty on Wednesday, and has "already helped find a bad guy!" Diko can be seen in the video getting into the back of his handler, Officer Camacho's SUV.
DIKO UPDATE!
— LVMPD (@LVMPD) August 16, 2023
He's back to work!!
K9 Diko has been cleared to return to duty and he's already helped find a bad guy!
His handler, K9 Officer Camacho, is excited to have his partner riding in the back of the SUV on calls again! pic.twitter.com/y62jBIYrcL
Las Vegas police were called to the scene of a stabbing near Maryland Parkway and Twain Avenue, where a person was found "suffering from lacerations." Through the course of an investigation, police learned that the suspect was also seen stabbing an unknown female victim in the area.
The suspect — later identified as 30-year-old Ezekiel Barnes — was later located by police in a nearby parking garage, where he attempted to set fire to a vehicle after being confronted by police.
Officers deployed Diko in an attempt to take Barnes into custody, but Barnesinstead stabbed the K-9 multiple times.
Diko was immediately transported to a nearby veterinarian clinic, where he would recover for more than a week before being released back into his handler's care on August 2.
