Warning for Northamptonshire's crooks ... this Boycie won't be going to Peckham, he's going to BITE 'EM

Meet the newest police officer on paw-trol around Northamptonshire.

PD Boycie and handler PC Alex Willatt successfully passed their licensing after a testing 13-week course ready to join the 15-strong Dog Section at Northamptonshire Police.

Among the first to send their good wishes were campaigners from Finns Law who are hoping to see a change in the law to punish offenders who injure or kill Police and other service dogs in the line of duty.

Finn's Law is named after PD Finn who suffered horrendous stab wounds saving the life of his handler in 2016 although the offender could only be charged with criminal damage.

A simple message said: "Stay safe and happy hunting."

Boycie — named after the Only Fools and Horses character — will have a lot to live up to, too.

Expert sniffer PD Socks had an early start — and a well-earned nap later on — as he joined the Armed Response team for a dawn raid in Wellingborough which uncovered a stash of suspected Class A drugs

And Socks also got his nose into a large amount of cash and bags of criminal property during another swoop in Kettering.

PD Ebby also earned an extra doggy treat or two after tracking down suspects who fled from a vehicle which had failed to stop for officers and more suspects at an incident at a recycling centre.

And another of the four-legged detectives, PD Nala, tracked down a suspect who ran away from a stolen vehicle — and found them hiding in a storm drain! A further search of where he had hidden revealed discarded clothing and the stolen vehicle keys along with other keys.

Probably better to be on duty around Northamptonshire than his namesake's old stomping ground in South London.

As Boycie once said of Peckham: ""I've left my Mercedes parked downstairs and you know what they're like on this estate. They'd have the wheels off a Jumbo if it flew too low."

You can follow the exploits of Northamptonshire's Police Dogs on their own Twitter account @northantsdogs or by using the hashtag #thenoseknows

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