Funeral Procession Announced for Big Lake Police Department K9 Bruno

(KNSI) — The Big Lake Police Department is having a funeral for its K9 officer who suddenly died last week.

The public is invited to line the route as the funeral procession for K9 Bruno begins at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, October 22nd. It will start on Highway 10 just east of 168th Street Northwest and then continue west on 10 and cross through County Road 42 into downtown Big Lake. From there, the route goes north on Lakeshore Drive/Hiawatha and then winds its way around Big Lake and Mitchell Lake before going south on Eagle Lake Road through Glenwood. The procession will end at Southbound Eagle Lake Road and Minnesota Avenue.

Police ask mourners to park their cars safely and legally and be respectful of no parking zones and signs.

K9 Bruno passed away on October 12th. A letter from Chief John Kaczmarek says Bruno’s cause of death was an unforeseen medical emergency while off duty. He was brought to an emergency veterinarian who “provided excellent care and medical services for him.”

The department called him “an instrumental piece to this police department and to the community of Big Lake. We will forever miss him!”

A post on the Big Lake Police Department Facebook page thanked the community for the “overwhelming support over the course of Bruno’s life.” The department began raising money for its canine program in September 2016 and had raised more than its $51,250 goal within three months.

K9 Bruno was a German Shepherd/Belgian Malinois mix and came to Big Lake from the Slovak Republic in November 2016. He and his human partner Officer Guy Chaffee graduated from Detector Dog Training in July 2019. The name Bruno is a Germanic word meaning “shield or armor.”

K9 Bruno is survived by Chaffee and his family and the men and women of the Big Lake Police Department.

The Benton County Sheriff’s Office says K9 Bruno was also known to train with BCSO K9 Ragnar, so the loss “hits close to home.”

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