South Shore K-9 spent 12 years on the force. Now, a big honor

Hannah Morse, The Patriot Ledger
Updated ·2 min read
Braintree police K-9 Lucky and police officer Richard Seibert.
Braintree police K-9 Lucky and police officer Richard Seibert.

BRAINTREE − A Braintree K-9 officer known as “one of the most prolific drug dogs” was recognized for his contributions to federal legal cases in 2022 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Boston.

K-9 Lucky was a yellow English Labrador retriever that worked with the police department and federal partners for 12 years. In that time, he sniffed out millions of dollars' worth of illegal drugs as well as money and property − such as cars, motorcycles, guns and real estate − connected to the drug trade.

“He had a wonderful partnership with postal inspectors,” Braintree Police Chief Tim Cohoon said. “He would intercept packages on a weekly basis.”

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Lucky died of old age in April 2022, three weeks before what would have been his 14th birthday.

“He’ll never be forgotten and can never be replaced,” Cohoon said.

The U.S. Attorney's Office honored Lucky with a 2023 Law Enforcement Award for exceptional contribution to a federal investigation/prosecution. The Braintree Police Working Dog Foundation, which adopted Lucky at 19 months old, received the award.

Born in May 2008 at Grandvista Labrador Retrievers in Bow, New Hampshire, Lucky was adopted by the foundation in December 2009 and assigned to police officer Richard Seibert. The two started to take cases together after 12 weeks of training in narcotics detection.

His “affable and playful nature” made Lucky one of the Braintree Police Department’s “best ambassadors,” an obituary written by the police department said.

K-9 Lucky and K-9 Kitt were members of the Braintree Police Department.
K-9 Lucky and K-9 Kitt were members of the Braintree Police Department.

Lucky was also close with K-9 Kitt, who was killed while pursuing an armed suspect in a domestic dispute in June 2021. The armed man, Andrew Homen, was also killed. Police officers William Cushing, Kitt’s handler, and Matthew Donoghue were injured.

Seibert, an Army veteran who has been with the department for more than 18 years, was also there that day, but without Lucky.

Kitt was recently honored with a statue at the rededicated Braintree Police Officers Memorial.

Hannah Morse covers growth and development for The Patriot Ledger. Contact her at hmorse@patriotledger.com.

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: US attorney honors Braintree Police Department's drug dog