Noon, Jan. 14 Update:
From the Thurston County Sheriff's Office K9 Unit: "Arlo has come out of his first surgery where it was discovered that the bullet is lodged near Arlo’s spine. A second surgery at Oregon state university has coordinated with a neurosurgeon. The Lacey fire Department has graciously agreed to provide a medical transport for Arlo down to OSU. Thank you Lacey Fire department! Please keep Arlo in your thoughts and prayers."
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A Thurston County Sheriff’s Office K9 and an armed suspect were shot Wednesday night near the Thurston-Lewis county line during a vehicle pursuit, which started in Tumwater and came to an end at milepost 88 on Interstate 5 at Grand Mound.
Both the suspect, a 25-year-old male, and the K9 have “survivable injuries,” according to information released Thursday from the sheriff’s office. The Mason County Sheriff’s Office is expected to lead an investigation into the officer-involved shooting.
The K9 that was shot is a 3-year-old German Shepherd named Arlo. The law dog first hit the streets with deputies in 2019 and is the unit’s youngest K9.
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to cover Arlo’s surgery. Outfitting, training and the health care of Thurston County’s K9 units are covered almost entirely by community donations and are not not paid for by county tax dollars.
The campaign so far had raised $13,410 of its $25,000 goal by Thursday morning, with contributions coming from roughly 250 individuals. Funds contributed are expected to go to the Thurston County Deputy Sheriff’s Foundation. That campaign can be found here.
The pursuit reportedly started around 8 p.m. near Cleveland Avenue and Hartman Court Southeast in Tumwater, according to Thurston County. Deputies attempted to make contact with a vehicle that was driving reckless when the driver fled.
According to the Washington State Patrol, Thurston County deputies requested assistance with a vehicle that entered I-5 shortly after that time.
The pursuit led to Interstate 5, with law enforcement shutting down lanes shortly after the incident.
“The subsequent contact with the driver resulted in an officer involved shooting, during which the 25-year-old male driver and TCSO -9 were struck by gunfire,” a news release from the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office read.
Arlo sustained a bullet to a shoulder and right-rear leg, and was expected to go into surgery Thursday morning.
“Arlo had a pretty rough night in that he was in quite a bit of pain,” Thurston County Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit wrote in an update. “They had him maxed on all his pain meds so there wasn’t much more they could do to make him more comfortable.”
The armed suspect was transported to a nearby hospital in serious condition.
The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office has not said whether Arlo was struck by gunfire from law enforcement officers or the suspect.
