Award for Surrey Police dog who faced knife-wielding suspect

A Surrey Police dog and his handler who safely detained a man wielding a knife have won a national bravery award.

Two-year-old German shepherd, Frankie, and PC Eddie Cabrera, 39, from Horsham in West Sussex, were six months into the role when they were called to the incident in Leatherhead in February.

Philip Kinnaird, 46, from Leatherhead, was convicted of threatening a person with a blade or sharply pointed article in a public space and sentenced to two years in prison at Chichester Crown Court on Friday.

Winning the Outstanding Bravery Award from the Thin Blue Paw Foundation, a national dog welfare charity, Cabrera said Frankie “didn’t cower or shy away at all, he was so brave”.

The charity said the award celebrates “outstanding teamwork, bravery and dedication to public safety under exceptionally challenging circumstances”.

Body-worn video footage, supplied by Surrey Police, showed the duo in action as Kinnaird swung a knife at them and said “I’ll stab you”.