Good boy! Newnan police dog sniffs out missing elderly person

NEWNAN, Ga. - It's all treats and belly rubs for a Newnan police dog who tracked down a missing elderly person on Veterans Day.

The Heard County Sheriff's Office reached out to the Newnan Police Department at around 1 a.m. on Monday to help search for a missing elderly person. The individual had been missing for at least five hours at that point.

Newnan Police Officer Lyle brought his partner, K-9 Flash, to aid the search.

"I game him a hat that belonged to the male. And I gave him his command to track and all of a sudden he started pulliing hard across the street," said Officer Lyle.

After sniffing a piece of clothing, Flash was hot on the trail. Within just seven minutes, he lived up to his name. He found the missing person, who was still conscious and alert.

"He had taken a tumble and was hurt," Lyles said of the man.

Flash, the bloodhound, is eight months old and in the past few weeks he has seen Flash become increasingly confident and capable in his training. Always eager to work. The department bought him in Kentucky with funds from the Newnan-Coweta Public Safety Foundation.

Chief Brent Blankenship says finding a missing person in seven minutes. You cannot put a price tag on that.

"I am very proud of them," Blankenship said.

"It's time to give Flash a treat," a spokesperson for the Newnan Police Department posted on social media. "Job well done guys!"

His favorite treat, according to Officer Lyle, is chicken.