On the night of November 13, 2019, Police Officer Jarred Koopman, with the Fischer Police Department lost his partner in the line of duty. What started as an apprehension of two fleeing suspects ended with the death of K9 Officer Harlej, pronounced Harley. Here is the story of his loss and how his handler, his family, and the community are dealing with his loss.

The night started normal enough

The evening started with a routine traffic stop of a possible drunk driver. The driver decided to flee, and, after a brief chase, two suspects fled from the vehicle into the nearby woods. It was at this point that K9 Officer Harlej was deployed to help apprehend the two. As the officers searched the woods for the suspects, shots were heard.

Soon though, tragedy struck

Rushing to the area, Officers found the K9 Officer and one of the suspects. Unfortunately, during the apprehension of one of the suspects, Richard Garret, Officer Harlej had been shot and killed. He was found dead on the ground near the suspect, who Harlej had bitten on the leg.

The suspects were apprehended

Both of the suspects were eventually arrested and taken into custody. The shooter, Garret, has been charged with nine charges, which include among others striking a law enforcement animal, criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon, and resisting law enforcement with a vehicle.

Harlej had an impact on the lives of many

Harley had become an integral part of the Koopman family in the time he was partnered with the officer. K9 officers live with their handler and family and so, Harlej had become quite close with Officer Koopman, his sons, and his wife. Koopman even recounted how he and his sons would take Harlej for a walk each morning before their day began. Koopman even wrote a tribute to his lost partner:

“Last night, was the night as a K9 handler you train your heart for but are never truly ready for.

I lost my K9 partner Harlej early this morning doing what he loved.

My memories of him are just pure joy and happiness. He was the most dedicated, hard-working, and always in relentless pursuit of everything we did.

Nobody will ever know the time it takes for a K9 to be successful. But everyone will see the successes and we had a lot of successes together.

Harlej and I spent countless hours together in the nearly 5 years I had him. I think about all the hours of training we had and the countless hours we spent together in the car driving around Fishers.

I think about all the men and women who played a role into making him great and great he was!

Harlej and I assisted in a lot of arrests and helped get a lot of bad people off of the streets to help keep the city of Fishers safe.

I will always remember how quiet Harlej was in my car, but at the same time remembering every time that I got out of my car and could see his glowing eyes staring at me with his ears up high. He always waited to be called and was ready to do whatever I asked of him. Harlej did it without fear. I knew every time I got him out of my car, he was going to help every time. Whether that was to find drugs during a walk around or tracking down a fleeing felon.

I know you’re chewing on some tennis balls right now buddy. Daddy loves you and I’m so glad you were my partner and in my life.

Love you Hars!

You are a REAL hero today buddy. And you saved our lives last night.

EOW 11/13/2019”

Officer Koopman’s family deals with Harlej’s passing as well

In a blog post, Koopman’s wife also wrote about the loss of Harlej:

“You wait for both of them to come home together. So when your husband calls you at 3:30 am and starts the conversation with, ‘I am ok…but Harlej is gone.’ A part of you crumbles. The loss feels unbearable. Your family breaks a little. And Jarred comes home alone. Most people would prob think…. ‘all this sadness for a dog?’And part of me could believe that. Because most dogs wouldn’t follow you into the darkness of danger.”

The loss of a partner and friend is hard, whether they are a human or animal. And while Officer Koopman is dealing with the loss of Harlej, he won’t soon forget what Harlej brought to his life, both on the job and at home. Here is a video tribute of K9 Officer Harlej from Officer Koopman’s Facebook page.

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H/T: I Heart Dogs