HIALEAH, Fla. -
Authorities are investigating the deaths of two K-9 work dogs with the Hialeah Police Department.

The dogs died Wednesday at the Davie home of an off-duty Hialeah K-9 officer, Hialeah police said.

Hileah detectives and Davie police arrived at the home of Hialeah K-9 officer Nelson Enriquez regarding the death of his two assigned K-9 work dogs, "Jimmy," a 7-year-old bloodhound, and "Hector," a 4-year-old Belgium Malinois.

Hialeah police said it appears Enriquez left the K-9s in his marked police vehicle parked in the driveway of his Davie house Wednesday morning as he returned home after completing his midnight shift.

Enriquez discovered the dead K-9s Wednesday evening and notified police, according to the Hialeah Police Department.

The Davie Police Department is leading the investigation, authorities said. Hialeah police are also conducting a complete and concurrent internal investigation.

Enriquez is a 13-year veteran of Hialeah and has been a K-9 handler the past seven years, Hialeah police said. Enriquez was relieved of duty pending the outcome of the investigation.

"The Hialeah Police Department is extremely saddened by this unfortunate occurrence and every effort will be made to determine the cause of this terrible tragedy, which claimed the lives of two very beloved members of our Hialeah police family," said Carl Zogby, of Hialeah Police Department. "This is still an open and active investigation and we must wait for the outcome from the Davie police and the Broward State Attorney’s Office."

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If he is found to have just left those dogs like that, he should be fired, charged, and ordered to pay for the entire mess.

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Hialeah.

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If he is found to have just left those dogs like that, he should be fired, charged, and ordered to pay for the entire mess.

Enriquez, a 13-year veteran who has spent the past seven years on K9 patrol, has been suspended with pay. While Davie police investigate, Hialeah police are running a parallel investigation into Enriquez’s actions through internal affairs.