TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan has received its first electronic storage detection dog (ESD K9) from the U.S. in a law enforcement collaboration that helps fight crime in the digital age.
The U.S. deploys specially trained canines to sniff out electronic devices such as cellphones, hard drives, flash drives, and SD cards that may hold criminal evidence. Such police dogs can identify a chemical compound called triphenylphosphine oxide (TPPO), which is used in electronic storage devices.
Impressed by the performance of an ESD K9 in a joint operation against human trafficking with the Los Angeles Police Department, Yang Li-ching (楊力靜), a Taiwanese police officer posted in the city, decided to introduce ESD K9s to Taiwan, wrote CNA.
Her effort resulted in the donation to Taiwan of a 2-year-old male Labrador from the Operation Underground Railroad (OUR). The organization is a U.S. anti-sex trafficking non-profit that trains ESD canines and gifts them to law enforcement units across the country.
According to Yang, the Labrador sent to Taiwan was named “Wafer” in a nod to the chipmaking prowess of the country and in accordance with the U.S. tradition of naming ESD K9s after electronics.
Originally trained to be a guide dog or psychiatric assistance dog, Wafer failed to pass the relevant tests because he was too energetic. However, he is highly play-motivated and obedient, rendering him fit for a career shift, Yang joked.
Such K9s are extraordinary in picking up electronic scents in unlikely settings, including on grassland or beneath stones in a river, said Yang, who joined Wafer in his training in Indianapolis earlier this month. Currently under quarantine, Wafer will assume his duties on Sept. 11.
Taiwan gets its first electronic storage detection dog from the U.S., Wafer. (Facebook, taiwaninla photos)
Taiwan gets its first electronic storage detection dog from the U.S., Wafer. (CNA photos)