Police dog behind £250,000 criminal cash haul dies after collision

A police dog who once sniffed out £250,000 in criminal cash and took part in Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral has died after a crash.

PD Bert, a five-year-old springer spaniel with Cleveland Police, was in a dog support unit vehicle with an officer and another dog when it collided with a BMW in Hartlepool at about 9pm on Thursday.

Both dogs were taken to a veterinary clinic, where one was found to be uninjured.

Because of the severity of his injuries, PD Bert was put to sleep. The officer suffered minor injuries.

A 33-year-old man was arrested at the scene and later charged with drink driving.

He has been bailed to appear at Teesside Magistrates’ Court on August 1.

PD Bert had served with the force for three and a half years, using his skills to detect drugs, firearms and large sums of money.

He was praised for locating £250,000 during a single search and had been deployed to London as part of the policing operation during the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.