A South Jersey police department is mourning the loss of a K-9 officer.

The Glassboro Police Department has announced that Anka, a K-9 officer with the department, was killed over the weekend after running away when she was spooked by fireworks.

K-9 handler Charles Williams returned home around 9:00 Saturday night when he found Anka had broken out of her kennel.  Area police departments began searching for her and an off-duty officer found her at the intersection of Cross Keys Road and Flanagan Avenue in Monroe Township. K-9 Anka was found in the roadway, severely injured after apparently being struck by a vehicle. Anka was rushed to a nearby veterinary hospital and while en-route succumbed to her injuries.

Anka, a 6-year-old German Shepherd, was donated to the Glassboro Police Department by the Bright Star German Shepherd Rescue in Rochester, NY.  The Glassboro Police K-9 Unit will honor K-9 Anka in a memorial service in the near future.

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