Police dog Duke refuses to let go after latching onto a car thief’s leg and being dragged behind the vehicle in Melbourne

A police dog was dragged 150metres along a road after latching onto the leg of a car thief who was attempting to speed off in a stolen vehicle while evading arrest. 

Joel Simons viciously fought with a dog squad officer who spotted the 36-year-old attempting to break into a car in the southeast Melbourne suburb of Cranbourne on September 18 last year.

CCTV and police bodycam shows the officer grappling with Simons.

‘Police mate, police, police,’ the officer shouts as Simons attempts to pull free of his grip.

‘Get on the ground c***.’

Simons grabs a metal baton and delivers brutal blows to the officer’s head loosening his grip.

As Simons pulls free and runs down the street the officer prompts police dog Duke out of the back of his vehicle to assist him in bringing down the fugitive.

Duke, a Belgian Malinois, chases Simons who jumps into stolen Toyota Corolla parked a few metres down the street.

Before Simons can close the door the courageous police dog sinks his teeth into thief’s leg while the officer attempts to pull the offender out of car.

However, Simons is able to accelerate away with Duke being dragged from the vehicle’s side. 

‘He’s got my dog. Duke jump! Come!,’ the officer shouts despairingly.

The dog had to be rushed to an emergency vet with grazes to its right shoulder, inner thigh, all four paws and a deep graze to his right knee.

The police officer was taken to hospital with deep cuts to his face and bruising.

Police later found the Toyota, which was stolen from a car rental company, at Lang Lang about 70km southeast of Melbourne. 

Simons was arrested the following day and pleaded guilty to intentionally causing injury, wounding an animal, driving while disqualified and attempting to steal from the Holden. 

As Simons runs to his nearby Toyota the officer calls out his faithful police dog companion Duke

A court heard that Simons suffers cognitive impairments and has been a heavy user of illegal drugs

In September he appeared again in County Court of Victoria facing charges of intentionally causing injury and animal cruelty after being jailed for almost a year on remand. 

Simons told the court he was upset at being charged with animal cruelty because he wasn’t the sort of person who would inflict harm on animals.

‘It (Duke) jumped in the car, it jumped out, I didn’t drag it,’ Simons testified, according to the Blue Mountains Gazette.

The court was told Simons has cognitive impairments that make him compulsive and unable to deal with complicated circumstances.

He has spent much of his life homeless but still hoped to secure long-term accommodation with the help of the NDIS. 

Simons had been working seven days a week as both a labourer and an NBN optic fibre installer before being forced to take time off work for his mental health.

This had caused him to relapse into drug use, the court heart.

He is due to be sentenced at a later date.