K-9 drive not tied to LPSO

A group calling itself the “Puppy Patrol” has local law enforcement issuing a warning to Lafourche Parish residents.

Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre said the Indiana-based group – Dogs Against Drugs/Dogs Against Crime National Law Enforcement K-9 Association – has no local ties.

In recent weeks, the Puppy Patrol was directed to leave Baton Rouge, where they had been soliciting funds, according to BRPD spokesman Robert Tulley.

“It appears to be a group of veteran officers or current officers soliciting funds for their own canine unit,” he said. “But they are telling residents otherwise.”

Soliciters are reportedly seeking funds to conduct school searches with the K9s. The group asks that payment be sent to a Baton Rouge address.

“This location is currently being checked out by authorities,” Webre said in a release. “The reality is, as far as we can elicit, there is no legitimate law enforcement agency participating with or receiving funds from this group.”

According to Webre, the group is not asking for a small donation, but rather hundreds of dollars.

Currently, the state Attorney General’s Office is investigating the organization’s authenticity.

Meanwhile, Webre is urging anyone who receives a call from “Puppy Patrol” or any group claiming to raise money for police agencies to contact the Louisiana Attorney’s General Office’s Consumer Protection Hotline at 1-800-351-4889.