Veteran Fort Wayne police officer dies in battle with cancer www.privateofficer.com

 

FORT WAYNE IN Nov 6 2011 – Kevin Weber, a veteran Fort Wayne police officer known for training dogs to sniff out drugs, explosives and criminals, has died after a battle with brain cancer. He was 55.

Weber, a father of three, died Thursday surrounded by his family, according to an obituary.

As a young man, Weber spent two years with the Navy as a radio operator. He later worked at the Baer Field Airport Department of Safety and the Allen County Sheriff’s Department.

At 24, he joined the Fort Wayne Police Department. He served as a city officer for 31 years, with 24 of those years as a K-9 officer. He was one of two master trainers with the department.

Weber’s first dog, Zak, became the first certified narcotic-detection dog for Fort Wayne police. Another of his dogs, Badge, was cross-trained to track people and detect bombs and drugs.

“What are we as policemen – we’re hunters,” he told The Journal Gazette this year for a feature story. “We have to hunt the lost child; we have to hunt the bad guy – what better tool as a hunter to have than a properly trained police dog.”

Weber was born in Wyandotte, Mich., outside Detroit. As an officer, he lived in Fort Wayne and was a longtime member of St. Jude Catholic Church.

He went on medical leave after being diagnosed with brain cancer in April.

A visitation for Weber is scheduled from 2 to 9 p.m. Sunday at D.O. McComb and Sons Lakeside Park funeral home, 1140 Lake Ave. A burial Mass will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. Monday at St. Jude Catholic Church, 2130 Pemberton Drive.