US ‘porn dog’ has knack for sniffing out electronic devices

Electronic-sniffing dog URL is pictured with one of his handlers. Photo from Weber County Sheriff’s Office official Facebook page

The Utah police force is receiving help from an unlikely source in its fight against pornography.

A black Labrador, named URL, has been making strides for the state’s police department, as he becomes the first canine in its electronic detection unit.

The 16-month-old hound has been given the playful moniker “porn dog” for his knack for detecting electronic storage devices such as thumb drives, cellphones, SIM cards, SD cards, external hard drives, tablets and iPads.

The skilled mutt also comes from the same trainer as the K-9 who played a role in the arrest of former Subway pitchman Jared Fogle, according to a Facebook post from the Weber County Sheriff’s Office.

“Whether it’s child porn, or terrorism intelligence, narcotics or financial crimes information, URL has the ability to find evidence hidden on basically any electronic memory device,” the caption read.

Authorities said that URL will help investigators in these specific cases and in locating contraband including cellphones among prisoners at the Weber County Jail.

“URL does not actually search for illegal materials, but rather his highly sensitive nose has been trained to detect the unique chemical compounds found in certain electronic components,” the post said.

The K-9, meanwhile, was acquired from Jordan Detection Center in Greenfield, Indiana. He was reportedly rescued from a shelter as a puppy and went through six months of intensive training before becoming certified.

He is one of nine certified electronic detection K-9s in the country, and the only one in the western region. Khristian Ibarrola