PSD – RCMP SERVICE DOG – Klia

PSD - RCMP SERVICE DOG KLIA 299T

Birth date: June 1962

Taken on strength March 14, 1963
Handler: Kenneth William Mackay #18244

Ken was teamed with Klia on that same date in March 1963. Transferred to Kamloops, B.C. Sub-Division Dog Section in July, 1963.

In late 1963, Ken received a call from Enderby, B.C. Detachment for assistance in the search for 2 sisters who had gone missing after getting off the school bus. A search was initiated. Klia found books and clothing and after an all night search which ended tragically when the PSD led the handler to the bodies of the girls. Soon after, the suspect male, identified as Lawrence Haase, walked out of the woods and was arrested as a possible suspect. However, there was no physical evidence connecting him to the crime. The dog master decided to back track from where the suspect was first located. The PSD located a flashlight and continued to track back to the river.
Eventually, Klia indicated that there was something between two rotten logs. A man’s blood stained shirt was discovered. Klia tracked to a campfire that was still burning. In the meantime the suspect confessed to the murder and that he had killed the girls with a rifle. In spite of a massive search by civilians and RCMP members, the rifle could not be found. It was decided that everyone would be withdrawn from the search in order to let Ken and Klia complete the search. After 4 days of intense searching the PSD focused on a hollow log. When the handler tore the log apart, he found the rifle barrel. This evidence allowed a charge of murder against the suspect.

The murder trial was in the Supreme Court in Kamloops,B.C. in spring, late February and into March. One of the chief witnesses was the dog master, Ken Mackay, who testified to the marvels of his partner Klia. Klia’s extraordinary tracking and searching ability led to the uncovering of much needed evidence at the murder scene.

The judge, A.H. McLean, in his instruction to the jury, made a remarkable statement when he noted that to his knowledge, this case marked the first time in a Canadian Court that the evidence provided by the Dog Master and his Service dog was totally accepted.
Klia was 13 ½ months old at the time. Haase was convicted of Capital Murder March 6th, 1964