A K-9 team in training ended up sniffing out several dozen marijuana plants growing in a field during a training exercise, Volusia County deputies said.
The incident occurred Wednesday afternoon, as a group of K-9s and their police handlers were training with a private K-9 training facility out of New Smyrna Beach.
Deputies say, while practicing a track through some woods near State Road 44 and State Road 415 in the new Smyrna Beach area, a K-9 team from Kenton County in Kentucky stumbled onto a tent. The handler said his dog’s behavior started to change as it pulled him off track and led him to the tent. When they got there, the officer quickly discovered the reason for the dog’s behavior — the obvious scent of marijuana was in the air.
The investigation led deputies to not only 79 marijuana plants and about a pound of cultivated marijuana, but also to suspect, 38-year-old Anthony Parrish, who was found with a small amount of marijuana in his possession.
Parrish was charged with two felony offenses – manufacture of marijuana and possession of marijuana– and booked into the Volusia County Branch Jail in Daytona Beach. Â He is being held on a $3,000 bond.
