Frankfort Police Department Chief Scott Shoemaker announced the resignation and potential retiring of a Sergeant and his K9 during the Frankfort Board of Public Works and Safety meeting on Tuesday night.
Shoemaker announced that Sgt. Andrew Snyder submitted his resignation effective Aug. 1 as he prepares to move across state lines with his family. Snyder is currently a Sergeant at the department, the Night Shift Supervisor and a K9 Handler with K9 Turbo. Snyder became well known in the Frankfort community after being one of three officers on the scene of a fire on April 3.
After assessing the situation and locating the family trapped on the second floor of the residence, Snyder located a ladder and removed the baby from the building before helping to further save the family who were reporting difficulty breathing.
Snyder, alongside Officer Freddy Martinez and former Officer Madison Douglass were awarded with the Medal of Valor for their efforts during the dire situation. As a result of Snyder’s bravery and dedication to the Frankfort community, Shoemaker stated that receiving his resignation was bittersweet.
“Couple months ago, he came to me in my office and didn’t really want to go, but it’s the right decision,” Shoemaker said. “His wife is obviously taking a job, and they’re going to move out of state, so he’s been a big deal for us in the last eight years. As being part of the team that hired him and now for him to come in and resign, it’s stinks, but I’m happy for him.”
Snyder wrote his resignation letter to uplift the department community who will be tasked with adjusting following his departure, stating:
I am writing to formally announce my resignation from my position as Sergeant/K-9 officer with the Frankfort Police Department, effective August 1, 2024. Please know that this is a bittersweet and exceptionally difficult decision that was made with thoughtful consideration.
I have thoroughly enjoyed working for the Frankfort Police Department over the past eight years. It has been an honor to serve the community I grew up in. Protecting and serving with my colleagues, especially as a Sergeant and on our SWAT team, has provided me with invaluable growth, both professionally and personally. Working with K9 Turbo has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life, and I cannot thank the Frankfort Police Department enough for giving me the opportunity to become a K9 handler and develop alongside Turbo.
To ensure a smooth transition, I am providing a four-month notice, wanting to give the department an ample amount of time to prepare for my departure date. Please let me know how I can be of assistance during this transition period, as I want to ensure as smooth of a transition as possible.
My request as I move into this new chapter of my life is, to be able to have K9 Turbo retire with me and his family. I would also like to purchase my sidearm, at the price of replacing it for the department. From the bottom of my heart, I want to sincerely thank you for the opportunity to serve on the Frankfort Police Department.
With the request for K9 Turbo to be retired to ensure that he will be with his family that he has come to know, Shoemaker informed the board that he recommends the approval of the retirement, but no officially documents have been filed as of Tuesday evening.
“Normally when a K9 retires, it would retire to the officer and family anyway, but Turbo probably has maybe a year or so before we were going to do that, so it’ll be up to the city if they’re okay with retiring Turbo a year early,” Shoemaker said. “In the sense of training with another handler and acclimating to that handler, it’ll take months, three to six months to even do that, so my recommendation would be to retire Turbo and allow Turbo to move with his family.”
Shoemaker stated that the retirement of K9 Turbo would not set the department back as it received a grant from the Drug and Alcohol Coalition to purchase two new dogs, and a partnership with the Valparaiso Police Department would allow for the ease of training for both the dogs and handlers.
“We’re going to have an agreement with the Valparaiso Police Department who’s going to help significantly,” Shoemaker said. “We’re able to get two dogs essentially for the price of one. We’ve been short a dog since we had a resignation last summer, so we’re going to be putting out two dogs this fall, and the Valparaiso Police Department is going to help train the dogs and the handlers, which is a significant savings for the city.”
Shoemaker stated that the dogs and handlers would likely undergo training in September.
Shoemaker stated that the department enjoyed being fully-staffed for around four months, and they will seek to regain that status of being fully-staffed by announcing the open position and accepting applicants for the position in the near future.
Shoemaker concluded by stating that numerous members of the department are possibly gearing up for promotions, including multiple Sergeants who will become eligible for the promotion to Lieutenant in the near future, which will lead to the department seeking officers to promote to the Sergeant positions, including filling the void left by Snyder’s resignation.
“We’re such a young department,” Shoemaker said. “We actually have some Lieutenant spots that are still unfilled just because we are giving the Sergeants time as Sergeants, so we’re working on promotions of Lieutenants, then we will find an officer to replace him as Sergeant probably in the fall.”
The Frankfort Board of Public Works and Safety approved the resignation and will hear more about the potentially retirement of K9 Turbo at a later meeting.
– Photo courtesy of FPD