JOIN USQuick action by a brave police dog has saved the life of a police officer, who was seriously injured by three thugs in the US state of Mississippi.
Deputy Todd Frazier was driving on a deserted road during his night shift last week along with his K-9 officer, Lucas, when he noticed a car at a rest stop in Pearlington, Mississippi, authorities said.
Thinking the lone man sitting in a blue Lincoln Town Car with the lights off needed help, he stopped.
While near the car, Frazier heard some activity coming from the woods nearby. Soon, two other men dashed toward him, said Glenn Grannan, chief investigator with the Hancock County Sheriff's Office.
"The deputy tripped and fell to the ground as he was backing away from the vehicle," Grannan said.
"That's when all three male subjects, including the driver, ambushed him, cut him on the forehead with a sharp object and dragged him into the woods," CNN quoted Grannan as saying.
During the struggle, Frazier hit a remote control device around his neck, which unlocked the backdoor of his patrol car, authorities said.
K-9 Officer Lucas, a black Belgian Malinois, sprung out.Only two police cars in the town have the specially- designed quick release hatch, which is designed to speed up canine back-up support.
Thankfully, the heroic pooch realised its owner was under attack and it bit one of the assailants and charged at another, saving the officer's life.
Lucas bolted toward Frazier and bit one of the suspects, sending all three fleeing into the night, Grannan said.
Frazier suffered multiple bodily injuries and a two-and- a-half-inch cut to his forehead from what a doctor believes was a box cutter. He is expected to recover, authorities said.
The suspects fled in the car, which had big rims and an obscured license plate. They remain on the run.