CLEVELAND, OH – Brady Snakovsky, an active ten year old, helps raise money to outfit bullet proof vests for K9 officers through Brady’s K9 Fund. So far, he’s donated 264 vests to canine officers.
Brady has become a bit of a philanthropist/celebrity since he first founded Brady’s K9 fund in 2017.
He was chosen as Ellen DeGeneres & Cheerios One Million Acts Of Good winner, GoFundMe Kid Hero 2018, and ASPCA Kid Of The Year 2019, and One of Cleveland Magazines Most Interesting People in 2020. He’s been on the Steve Harvey Show and the Kelly Clarkson Show.
But this all started with Brady watching television.
Brady’s favorite shows are Live PD and Dirty Jobs according to Brady’s K9 Fund webpage. One day, he was watching television, and he saw a dog on television who wasn’t wearing a bulletproof vest. He didn’t understand why the dog wasn’t wearing a vest, or why they weren’t automatically issued.
His mother, Leah Tornabene, explained to Fox 8 News:
“He noticed a dog on television who wasn’t wearing a vest and he wanted to go out and buy a vest and give it to a K-9 who was in need on one.”
The only problem was that each vest costs $1,200.
Brady decided to raise money for a bulletproof vest for a police dog. That was over two years ago.
Now, he’s raising money to try to help as many police dogs as possible, to get the life-saving bullet proof vests. He partnered with the LOF Defense Systems, and because of his charity work, the manufacturer offers Brady the vests at the same cost as law enforcement.
He’s helped K-9 officers all over the country, and even in Canada.
The most recent recipient of one of these special vests is the Bedford Police Department K-9 Luca.
The Bedford Police Department said:
“We can’t thank Brady enough for what he has done for us and every other K9 he has vested.”
Brady wants to be a police officer when he grows up.
Brady’s K9 Fund has over 2,500 likes on Facebook, and nearly 6,600 followers on Instagram.
This is an incredible cause considering K9 dogs are also put in danger every day along with their handling officers. Here is a story Law Enforcement Today brought you in August about a K9 dog that was killed in the line of duty.
Anderson, South Carolina – A deputy-involved shooting that took place on the evening of August 11th led to a deceased suspect, another injured suspect, and a police K9 dying after sheriff’s deputies say they were ambushed when pursuing a suspect who had fled from authorities earlier in the evening.
Suspect and K9 die after ‘ambush’ shooting in Lowe’s parking lots, sheriff says #K9OfficerRoscoeWasMurdered #BlueLivesMatter #BackTheBlue https://t.co/oK0JGYWrf1
— Beth7 (@beth7_b) August 12, 2020
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division is currently handling the investigation as of now, which was said to have started out as a report for reckless driving on the evening of the 11th.
Anderson County Sheriff Chad McBride stated that deputies attempted to stop a vehicle at around 10:30 p.m. for reckless driving, but the suspects fled from authorities and the ACSO called off the vehicle pursuit after concerns over the dangers associated with high-speed chases.
The suspects were said to have later crashed into the rear of a taxi in the city of Anderson, and then fled the scene of the crash on foot.
Sheriff’s deputies enlisted the help of a K9, named Roscoe, to assist in tracking down the suspects’ whereabouts. That’s when Sheriff McBride said his deputies were ambushed by gunfire from the suspects at a Lowe’s parking lot on Clemson Boulevard:
“This could have been a lot worse. So, my heart is pounding right now.”
Deputies returned fire at the suspects, killing one male suspect and injuring a female suspect. Unfortunately, Roscoe was struck by gunfire and later died on August 12th while in veterinary care.
Greenville County Sheriff’s office helping with Anderson County Sheriff’s office escort for K9 Roscoe #RIPRoscoe pic.twitter.com/o1aDxR9hOp
— Renée Wunderlich (@ReneeWYFFNews4) August 12, 2020
Sheriff McBride described the perilous situations that law enforcement encounter on a daily basis:
“I can’t find the words. I know it’s just the scariest moments for these guys. Our law enforcement officers really have a dangerous job and put themselves in harm’s way and had no idea as they were coming up the ridge that they were going to be fired upon multiple times.”
The deceased male suspect was identified as 21-year-old Bryant Keith Hamilton. Some reports indicate that the female suspect shot was 16-years-old, but that has not yet been confirmed by officials at this time. The suspect was airlifted for medical treatment following the shooting.
The coroner’s office said in a news release Hamilton died as result of a gunshot wound to the head. Sources tell me a 16-year-old girl was flown from the scene with multiple gunshot wounds. (2/3)
— Cody Alcorn (@CodyAlcorn) August 12, 2020
No deputies were injured during the firefight according to reports.
As for K9 Roscoe, he was a 3-year-old German Shepherd that had joined the department back in 2017. The K9 was cited as being nationally certified for narcotics detection, tracking and criminal apprehension.
The Hyco K9 Fund, which came to be after the 7-year-old police K9 from the ACSO was killed in 2015 by a suspect he was tracking, released the following condolences for the fallen K9:
“On behalf of the Hyco K9 Fund we want to send our prayers and thoughts to K9 Roscoe, his handler, Matt Davis, his family and the entire Anderson County Sheriff’s Office during this very difficult time. We know all to well the pain they are experiencing.”
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