'Josh's dream come true': Puppy of slain Twinsburg officer Joshua Miktarian joins K-9 ranks

When Twinsburg police officer Joshua Miktarian served with his faithful K-9 Bagio by his side, he dreamed that Bagio's puppies would always be with him.

Now, 15 years after Miktarian was slain in the line of duty, the German shepherd's daughter, Mika, will be serving in Streetsboro.

"Mika has big paws to fill but carries the legacy of her father with her," Police Chief Patricia Wain said in a press release. "The members of Streetsboro PD are excited to have the opportunity to keep this connection to the past while moving forward to the future."

Bagio's legacy

Bagio was brought over from Czechoslovakia and grew to be 100 pounds. Miktarian's widow, Holly, said her husband instantly bonded with the German shepherd.

"Josh was an animal lover through and through," she said. "They loved each other a lot. Everywhere Josh went, Bagio was always by his side."

The police officer dreamed that Bagio's puppies would be part of his life forever, so in 2006, he took Bagio to Animal Clinic Northview in North Ridgeville, where a specimen was taken to be used for future breeding. The specimen was kept in cold storage for years.

On July 13, 2008, Miktarian, a K-9 officer and an 11-year veteran with the Twinsburg police, was shot and killed during a routine traffic stop on Glenwood Drive at 2 a.m. Ashford Thompson was convicted in 2010 of aggravated murder and other charges and sentenced to the death penalty.

Bagio was in the back of the cruiser at the time of the shooting and was not injured.

After Josh's death, Bagio lived out his days with Holly Miktarian and their daughter, Thea, until he died from blood cancer in 2012.

The next generation

This year, Holly and Thea decided the time was right to pull the specimen out of cold storage and breed it with their German shepherd, Nala.

After Nala gave birth to six puppies, the Miktarians checked to see if an area police department would be willing to take one of the dogs to serve as a K-9.

Wain said the police department had just lost Bo, a retired Malinois who served the Streetsboro community for 9½ years, when she got a call from Holly Miktarian about the puppies. Bo was retired and the department already had K-9s Reno and Kya and wasn't looking to add a third dog to the crew until she got the call.

"I wanted to move heaven and earth to make this happen," she said.

Wain said Miktarian's slaying sent shock waves through the law enforcement community, and Streetsboro has many ties to the Miktarians. Her husband is a Twinsburg police officer and served with Josh, and she is friends with the family. Streetsboro's mayor, a former Twinsburg firefighter, and Councilwoman Jennifer Wagner, a dispatcher in Twinsburg, also served with him and remember Bagio.

More: Widow of slain Twinsburg patrolman urges audience ‘to never forget’ fallen officers

"This is a full-circle moment," Wain said. "There is a lot of emotion behind it. It's nice to see Josh's dream come true."

Holly Miktarian said she and her daughter had only a few stipulations on their gift. They wanted the dog to live with a family, and they wanted to name the dog.

Streetsboro had their K-9 trainer, Pam Helmick of Halo K-9 Training Services, help select which dog would be best as a K-9.

She said Mika stood out because of her confidence and independence.

"She was the first one to lead the pack down the steps, and she would go off independently and investigate things," Helmick said. "We want that confidence and independence."

The gift to Streetsboro came just days before the 15th anniversary of Josh Miktarian's death.

"You can't time something like that," Holly said.

Mika settles in

Mika is settling into her new home with Streetsboro officer Luke Nelson, who is serving as a K-9 officer for the first time. Nelson and his wife have two young children and two other dogs.

"My goal was always to become a K-9 officer, so this is kind of a dream come true for me," he said.

Nelson and Mika will begin their training at Halo in the coming weeks.

More: Retired Streetsboro police K-9 dies; procession planned Monday

Wain said Mika will do drug work and tracking. She also hopes Mika will be a social dog who is able to do community relations work, like Bo did.

"That's something Bo was known for," she said. "He loved nothing more than to sit at your feet and get pets and scratches. We're hoping to get the same thing out of Mika."

Helmick said all K-9s are trained for socialization, although some dogs are more social than others.

"This dog will be trained to be social because that's what the chief wants," she said.

Holly Miktarian said Thea, who was 3 months old when her father was killed, grew up with Bagio. The 15-year-old is helping take care of the puppies.

"She thinks it's really cool," she said. "Technology is just amazing."

Reporter Diane Smith can be reached at 330-298-1139 or dsmith@recordpub.com.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Streetsboro K-9 puppy has ties to slain Twinsburg officer Miktarian