She is six years old, she is a Breton Spaniel, her name is Thais and since Monday she has become a benchmark of the Canine Unit of National Police. His deed, pending DNA confirmation, the location of Ignacio Palmero, disappeared for a year in Tenerife. He also found it in record time.
This Monday, as soon as the search device started, in a matter of minutes – the ones he used until he reached the point where he went directly – his relentless nose led the agents of the National Police to the remains of the young man. They were on a forest track popularly known as ‘La Pista de Las Hiedras’, in Monte de Las Mercedes, an area where On August 16, two boys flying a drone found his belongings.
“She went straight to the point as they released her,” say sources close to the case, “she had no doubt, she ran out and scored.” Agile, intelligent, perfectly trained and with a powerful sense of smell, it is not the first time that she has participated in a hunt, but it is the first time that she has found a Missing person.
Smell, track, detect and mark. It is their established ritual. Your job, your goal. For this he trains and lives. Miguel Ángel Díaz, police expert in Search and Location of human remains (REHU) it is your guide, your trainer, your shadow. The human agent who walks, bats and lives with her.
“She came to the unit when she was little, I took her in when she was a puppy and when she was a year old she started working,” she explains to OPEN CASE the policeman, who has been in the National Police Canine Guides unit since 2008.
“Thais is a dog that detects narcotic substances, weapons and money and, apart from that, she locates corpses,” says her guide.
Perfectly trained, her preparation is extensive, “she works for two specialties, she is a dog detector of narcotic substances, weapons and money and, apart from that, locates corpses“. He works hard, and he enjoys it. “Every morning he practices. He runs, he plays. He works playing. He’s having a great time,” says the agent.
Her physique, her agility, and her sense of smell put her in the unit. Thais owns an odor reception center four times larger than any human. It has about ten thousand receivers, compared to the 1,500 that man has. His expertise also surpasses any state-of-the-art forensics team.
They were flying a drone
A week before Thais found Nacho, on the same mountain, two young men they fly their drone. The aircraft loses control and falls down the slope. The terrain is steep, but they manage to find it. They get it back. When they return they find a backpack, a sleeping bag and several cans of food. No one. There is nothing else. “There’s a bag,” one announces. Are getting closer. “There is an ID.”
A day before, OPEN CASE, an events and investigation portal of Prensa Ibérica, voiced Lola Hijar. The woman denounced that her son Nacho I was disappeared for a year in Tenerife. It searched tirelessly since July 14, 2021.
The young people from the drone, reading the name on the documentation, called SOS Disappeared: It was from Nacho, Ignacio Palmero Hijar. Then, as recommended by the association, reported their discovery to the National Police. The investigation completely turned around. A raid was scheduled: human, aerial and dog means would beat the mountain. They had to wait for the arrival of the Canine Unit, based in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, where Thais works.
“They have located Nacho”
“They have found him. They have located Nacho.” Lola confirmed the worst news. Given the forecast of the hunt, the young man’s mother flew from La Palma – where she lives – to Tenerife, “I have to be there”. The result came as soon as the device was booted. “Everything has been very fast,” she told her broken with pain.
Since his track was lost, relatives, friends and relatives of Nacho tried to reconstruct his steps. They were looking for clues, answers. They did not arrive until this Monday, August 22. Thais would bring them.
The starting point was given by the young people who flew the drone, the end point was set by the canine agent. Nacho rests. Thais has provided answers, albeit sad ones, for her family. He has earned the prize, playing with his ball, with which his guidance compensates him when he does his job well; He has earned with honors to be part of the elite of the Canine Unit for the Search and Location of Human Remains (REHU) of the National Police.
