At noon tomorrow, Wednesday, January 17,  the Peekskill Police Department invites the entire community to a public memorial service for K-9 Charlie at the Peekskill Police Department headquarters. The City of Peekskill Police Department officially announced Charlie’s loss in a statement on January 7th on their Facebook page stating, “It is with heavy hearts that we share the news of the untimely passing of our beloved K9 Charlie who succumbed to injuries sustained as the result of a tragic accident on 01/06/2024.”

K9 Charlie quickly became a beloved and extremely valuable member of the Peekskill Police Department. Charlie was the first police canine in more than 20 years when he joined his handler, Officer Anthony Nappi, in 2017, when the Peekskill Police Department restarted the Canine Unit. On January 31, 2018 Charlie officially graduated from the MTA Police Canine Training program and joined the Peekskill Police Department. Throughout his career, K9 Charlie continued training and officially became dual certified in patrol and explosives.

Charlie’s name was chosen after students of the Peekskill elementary and middle schools held a contest to name the newest officer.  At that time, Charles Wassil’s name was a strong contender for the contest. Charles Wassil Jr. was a Peekskill Detective who passed away in 2013 from sarcoidosis, a disease he contracted while participating in the rescue efforts at the World Trade Center following the September 11 attacks. Charles Wassil, who worked at Ground Zero following the attacks, began having symptoms of sarcoidosis a few months after his time working on the “Pile” at Ground Zero. Wassil’s condition eventually forced him into retirement in 2008 and led to his passing in 2013 at the age of 52.

The Peekskill Police Department stated, “Since 2017, Charlie and his dedicated handler, PO Nappi, formed an unstoppable team, contributing to numerous successful operations – from tracking, to evidence recovery. K9 Charlie’s impact went beyond cases solved; his presence ensured the safety of PO Nappi and all of our fellow officers. The work that this team did allowed for the closing of cases that would otherwise have remained unsolved or been unable to prosecute due to missing key evidence.”

To honor Charlie’s memory and dedication to the Peekskill Police Department, the Police Department is inviting the public to Police Headquarters where they will be “honoring this hero’s legacy and the bond he shared with PO Nappi, the Nappi family, the members of the Peekskill community and the members of the Peekskill Police Department.” 

Please enjoy this photo gallery of Charlie and Officer Nappi throughout the years.