Police dog locates gun, fires round

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LAWRENCE, Mass., March 4 (UPI) -- Police in Massachusetts said a tracking dog managed to locate a stolen gun buried in a snow bank and accidentally fired off a round.

The Essex County Sheriff's Department said an officer heard gunshots coming from in front of a city barn around 2 a.m. Saturday in Lawrence and chased a gray Honda Accord with three males inside, The (North Andover) Eagle-Tribune reported Monday.

Officer Jess Hart said the vehicle "fled at a high rate of speed" and he spotted Jose Calderon, 28, jump from the back of the car and begin "burying something in the snow."

Ivan, a police dog handled by Lt. John Pickles of the Essex County Sheriff's Department, located the Ruger handgun in a snow bank and accidentally discharged the weapon with his paw. No one was injured, police said.

The gun was determined to have been stolen Oct. 2 in New Hampshire.

Calderon, Alexander Gonzalez, 21, and Jorge Henriquez, 26, were arrested and charged with unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition, receiving a firearm with a defaced serial number and receiving stolen property. Calderon was also charged with discharging a firearm within 150 feet of a highway and carrying a firearm without a license. In addition, Henriquez was charged with speeding.