Police Department raises money to upgrade K-9 vehicle

CAMBRIA COUNTY, Pa. (WTAJ) — Kato, the Northern Cambria Borough Police Department K-9, needs to upgrade his vehicle to do his job efficiently.

“He could find something very easily that I couldn’t see with my own eyes, and having a K-9 is just, they’re just a huge asset to any department,” said Tonya Marshall, Kato’s Handler.

The current vehicle that the police department has is 10 years old. It has high mileage and there’s an exhaust leak.

“Our K-9 officer does a lot of travel to Pittsburgh for training, so it’s always good to have another vehicle,” said Derek Stitt, Chief of Police for Northern Cambria.

“Anything that’s been in use for 10 years definitely needs upgrading, so that’s going to be a blessing to him, just to make sure that he’s safe,” Marshall said.

The department hosted a basket party on Sunday and invited children to get prizes and take pictures with the Easter bunny.

“I came to support our local police and everything they do for our community,” said Gina Kuncelman, who brought her kids to the event.

Kato is mostly cared for using money donated by the community. That includes everything from his vet care to his vehicle. Pellas Automotive has even offered to do all of the labor and installation on the new K-9 unit for free.

There’s not set date for when the vehicle will be ready for Kato, but you can still donate to the Police Department on their website or visit them at the station located at 1202 Philadelphia Ave.