Yoda's death comes just a month after fellow police dog Gazza was shot dead by Porirua siege gunman Pita Tekira. "He was an exceptional operational dog that will be sorely missed at Tauranga dog section," the post says. A post on the New Zealand Police Dog Trust Facebook page this afternoon said the announcement of Yoda's death was done with "much sadness". Police are mourning the death of Yoda the dog, but a little bit of him will live on in the dozens of puppies he's fathered. Yoda was 9 years old and was described as a "wonder dog" when he arrived in Tauranga from Trentham in 2007.

Source: New Zealand Herald May 20, 2016 22:03 UTC