Officer Andre and Luna, his inseparable service dog—a highly trained German Shepherd—have worked as a team for more than three years. Luna had never failed once. But that day at Otopeni Airport, something unusual happened that would put everything they had experienced together to the test.
While patrolling Terminal D, Luna suddenly tensed upon seeing a woman pushing a stroller. With her ears pricked and her tail firm, her demeanor changed drastically. Andre noticed the reaction immediately. He knew that when Luna acted like this, it wasn’t by chance. Something wasn’t right.
The woman was thin, pale, and seemed nervous. Luna approached slowly and began sniffing at the blue-blanket-covered stroller. Instead of relaxing, she let out a low, aggressive growl that attracted the attention of nearby passengers.
“Get that dog away from my baby!” the woman cried in a trembling voice.
But Luna didn’t obey, ignoring Andre’s command for the first time in three years. Instead of backing away, she lunged toward the stroller, yanked the blanket tightly, and revealed the unthinkable: there was no baby.
Beneath the blanket was a thermal bag with labels in Russian and Chinese, decorated with biohazard symbols. Inside, several containers glistened with a liquid that gave off a strange, pungent odor.
Officer Andre immediately detained the woman and called for reinforcements from the counterterrorism team. When he asked her what the material was, she burst into tears. She said she didn’t know anything, that she had only been paid to carry the package through security.
The investigation revealed an international trafficking network of highly hazardous biological materials. These materials had been illegally transported from unregulated laboratories in Asia to a secret facility in Europe. Had they gone undetected, the materials could have caused a biological catastrophe.
Thanks to Luna’s impeccable sense of smell and her courage, a tragedy was avoided.
Share this story with your loved ones. You never know when a four-legged hero can save lives.
