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ELKINS -- The Randolph County Sheriff's Office and members of the Northern Appalachian K-9 Interdiction Team have conducted a series of certified narcotic K-9 sweeps at several Randolph County schools.
Randolph County Sheriff Rob Elbon said that "free air sniffs" were set up and led by Prevention Resource Officers Rocky Hebb, Daniel Pennington and Ethan Carr. Hebb is the PRO at Tygarts Valley High School, while Pennington is at Elkins Middle School and Carr at Elkins High School.
"We try to do the sweeps randomly and it takes some coordination, because there are several K-9s that come from different counties and municipalities," Elbon told The Inter-Mountain.
"The sweeps aren't something we do yearly, but we do have to plan them out, with everything that is involved. Our Prevention Resource Officers did a good job of setting everything up and making sure everything went the way we had planned."
All three of the schools were part of the drug sweeps, as were Midland Elementary, Randolph County Technical Center, and the Randolph County Alternative Learning Center.
Elbon said that no narcotics or other contraband was found in any of the classrooms, offices, student parking areas, teacher parking areas, or any other public areas checked during the K-9 sweeps.
"We hope that doing sweeps like this is a deterrent to keep students from bringing anything to school," Elbon said. "I'm very happy to announce that we did not find any illegal substances, which is the way we want it."
Elbon said the K-9 sweeps are an important tool that will continue to be utilized during non-scheduled visits, or on an as-needed basis. He said the sweeps help ensure a safe learning environment for all students.
"With support from Randolph County Schools, we will continue to make sure the schools in the county are safe," Elbon said. "When the schools are safe, the students can focus on what they need to focus on, and that's getting an education. Having our PRO officers in the schools has meant a lot to what we are trying to do."