2025 By The Numbers

As 2025 comes to a close, the Santa Rosa Police Department K9 Unit reflects on a year defined by service, professionalism, and measurable results. Our K9 teams continued to play a critical role in protecting the community, locating dangerous suspects, and removing illegal weapons and narcotics from our streets.

2025 By the Numbers

Throughout the year, SRPD K9 teams conducted 118 deployments, with zero failed deployments, underscoring the reliability and precision of our handlers and dogs. These efforts directly contributed to:

• 155 arrests

• 60 suspect surrenders

• 63 gun searches, resulting in 19 firearm recoveries

• 7 ammunition or firearm parts recoveries

• 13 narcotics searches, resulting in 5 narcotics finds

  
  

These numbers represent far more than statistics. They reflect dangerous situations resolved safely, crimes interrupted, and lives protected.

Moment of the Year: K9 Rocco Apprehends Homicide Suspect

The defining moment of 2025 occurred on October 7, 2025, when K9 Rocco played a decisive role in the apprehension of a violent felony suspect.

At approximately 5:25 p.m., SRPD officers responded to reports of a stabbing at an apartment complex on Third Street. Upon arrival, officers located a 26-year-old male suffering from at least one stab wound to the torso. The victim was immediately transported to a local hospital for treatment. The suspect had already fled the scene.

Witnesses identified the suspect, and officers were advised that he had an outstanding felony warrant unrelated to the stabbing. As officers saturated the area, the suspect was located downtown and fled on foot through multiple city streets.

Officer Vercelli and K9 Rocco ultimately located the suspect near B Street and Fifth Street. Upon contact, the suspect immediately ran. K9 Rocco was deployed and successfully apprehended the suspect as he attempted to hide in the bed of a parked pickup truck.

The suspect was later booked into the Sonoma County Jail for attempted murder and his outstanding felony warrant. This apprehension exemplified the value of K9 teams in rapidly evolving, high-risk situations.

Outstanding Contributions Across the Unit

Several individual and team achievements stood out during the year:

• K9 Ghost led the unit in firearm recoveries, accounting for 14 of the unit’s 19 gun finds in 2025—an extraordinary contribution to removing illegal weapons from the community.

  
  

• The unit celebrated the graduation of K9 Oso, who successfully completed an intensive 8-week patrol and detection course with Spectrum K9. K9 Oso is a 19-month-old Belgian Malinois imported from Poland, trained in patrol tactics and narcotics detection.

  
  

  K9 Oso’s handler, Officer Jaleel, began his career with SRPD in 2021 and was named the Rotary Club’s Officer of the Year in 2022 for saving a child from drowning. Officer Jaleel joined the K9 Unit as a decoy in 2022, dedicating nearly 800 hours over four years to training and supporting K9 teams. His transition to handler reflects long-standing commitment and proven dedication to the unit’s mission.

  
  

• After 6.5 years of faithful service, K9 Ace retired in 2025. Over the course of his career, Officer Adams and K9 Ace, dual-certified in apprehension and narcotics detection, served the Santa Rosa community with distinction, and his contributions will have a lasting impact on the unit and those he worked alongside. Officer Adams continues to serve Santa Rosa as a patrol officer and as the board Secretary for the SRPD K9 Association.

Looking Ahead

The successes of 2025 highlight the effectiveness of continued training, strong handler-K9 partnerships, and community support. As we move into 2026, the SRPD K9 Unit remains committed to excellence, readiness, and service: protecting Santa Rosa with professionalism, courage, and teamwork.

We thank our officers, K9 partners, supporters, and community members for making this year possible.