K9 Crue finds missing juvenile with autism during snowstorm

December 3, 2025 — by Scanner Alerts Media

SANDOWN, N.H. — A juvenile with autism was safely located Tuesday night after Officer Capsalis and K9 Crue tracked him through snowy woods for roughly a mile and a half, following a request for assistance from the Sandown Police Department.

At approximately 8:17 p.m. on December 2, officers were notified that the juvenile had been missing for about an hour. While responders were en route, the juvenile called police, reporting he was “freezing cold” and that his phone battery was at 1%. The call dropped, and units believed the phone had died, increasing concern that the juvenile was lost in the woods.

Given the immediate risk from the weather and darkness, Officer Capsalis deployed K9 Crue to begin a track. Two Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office deputies joined the search. On Wells Village Road, K9 Crue detected odor and pulled into the nearby powerline corridor.

The team followed K9 Crue’s track approximately 1.5 miles into the woods, where they found the juvenile under trees and snow. The juvenile was transported to Parkland Medical Center for evaluation due to exposure to the cold.

According to officials, the coordinated response—initiated quickly after the dropped call—was crucial to locating the juvenile before conditions worsened. Agencies credited K9 Crue’s track and the joint effort between the responding officer and assisting deputies for the successful outcome.

Credit: Police department release.