Lake Co.'s Dax the K9 sniffs out another dangerous case

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Dax, the Lake County Sheriff canine has done it again!

This time, the patrol pup tracked down a suspect who cops said caused a crash that left a woman seriously injured. It happened over the weekend in the northern suburbs. CBS 2's Andrew Ramos has all the details from Lake County.

"Good boy!"

That's one way to describe DAX, a deputy canine with the Lake County Sheriffs Department.

And over the weekend, the four-legged officer once again proved his worth with the department when he sniffed out a suspect involved in a hit-and-run.

"It's pretty gratifying," said Sheriff's Deputy John Forlenza.

And clearly - Dax agrees.

According to Lake County officials, it all started at around 12:40am Saturday when someone called police to report an erratic driver at a Burger King in Round Lake Beach.

Responding officers pursued the driver, identified as 25-year-old William Neely, when they saw him commiting a number of traffic violations

Neely would elude officers but they would later cross paths with him several blocks away where the suspect crashed his silver sedan in a parked car.

Officers tended to a female passenger inside the totaled vehicle allowing Neely to flee on foot. Enter Lake County Sheriff canine Dax and his handler, Sheriff's Deputy John Forlenza.

"It started behind the house, then into a bike path, continued on a bike path and went into a park," Forlenza said.

The pursuit which lasted roughly two hours kept both Forlenza and Dax on their toes, or in Dax's case, his nose on the ground.

"His ears would pop up now and then and his head would pick up, and he would start to smell the air," Forlenza said.

Three miles later, they would find their man. Neely was discovered hiding down an embankment near a pond.

"He knew we were coming he was trying to hide. I don't know if he was ready for us, but with the dog after him, he gave up right away," Forlenza said.

Neely was taken into custody. He faces a number of charges, including failure to report a crash with injury and aggravated fleeing to elude.

As for Dax, it's just the latest find in what's become a impressive career that's led to roughly 300 successful missions, including in November, when he saved a woman's life who went missing in frigid weather.

Neely, the suspect in this case, is being held on a $500,000 bond. He's expected in court on January 30.

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• Lake County