Full Notification

Missing person recovered by K9 Nellie and Deputy Graves:

Sheriff Richard J. Behnke reports that on 7/23/19 at 9pm his Deputies responded to Pine Lake St near M60 in Howard Twp for a 46-year-old female that had walked into the woods near her home and had not returned. Family and friends became concerned because she does not leave the house too often due to medical issues. They began to search the wooded trails around the home and when they could not locate her, they notified the Sheriff’s Office. They were very concerned due to her medical condition, length of time she was missing, and the temperatures dropping. Approximately 11 hours after she went missing, K9 Nellie, the Sheriff’s Office Bloodhound, was able to lead Deputies to the female’s location, about a mile from the residence in a thick wooded area. The female was disoriented, cold and was transported to Lakeland Niles by SMCAS ambulance.

Assisting Deputies on scene was Pokagon Tribal Police, Dowagiac Police Department, Howard Twp Fire and Smcas Ambulance.