Police dog and handler win an award for 'exceptional courage'

THEY BOTH SHOWED 'INCREDIBLE BRAVERY'

- By LAURA CROSS

Four-year-old PD Yoiko with his handler, PC Tom Marsden

A POLICE dog and his handler from Hull have won an award for their bravery, the Thin Blue Paw Foundation has announced.

Four-year-old PD Yoiko was on duty with his handler, PC Tom Marsden in 2024, when the pair were called to a Hull address to support their Humberside Police colleagues.

Talking about the incident, Tom said: “The man was in an upstairs flat and was waving a shovel out of the window. He'd smashed all the windows and was throwing cans out of the window at officers; he was on a rampage.

“When the riot police went in, he was braced against the wall, holding the shovel like a baseball bat. It was chaos; there was a parrot flying around which another officer caught in an upturned washing basket.

“It was really smokey because he'd set light to a curtain and pieces of furniture. You could taste the smoke at the back of your throat.”