Lawrenceville police K9 succumbs to cancer

Lawrenceville police K9 Eiko, seen here with handler Officer Shawn Humphreys, passed away Thursday after being diagnosed with cancer. (Courtesy of Lawrenceville Police Department)

Lawrenceville police K9 Eiko, seen here with handler Officer Shawn Humphreys, passed away Thursday after being diagnosed with cancer. (Courtesy of Lawrenceville Police Department)

The Lawrenceville Police Department is mourning the loss of a K9 officer that succumbed to cancer Thursday afternoon.

Eiko, an 8-year-old German shepherd, served the community alongside handler Shawn Humphreys for five years. He was credited with more than 100 criminal apprehensions, officials said, and once assisted in the largest heroin bust in Georgia history.

He had recently been diagnoed with a "very aggresive malignant cancer of the blood vessels," a Lawrenceville police spokesman said.

"Eiko always gave 100 percent, never gave up and never got upset," Humphreys said in a statement released by the department.

Eiko will be laid to rest at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Oak Rest Pet Gardens, 2691 Harbins Road in Bethlehem.