A service dog with past narcotics training appeared to slip back into the job while on a routine beach walk in Jacksonville this month, helping lead its owner to a bale of marijuana that had washed ashore.
Tyler Gibson, an Air Force veteran, was walking with Zuma, his service dog, along Jacksonville Beach near Hanna Park on April 13 when the pair stumbled upon what Gibson initially thought was a Portuguese man-of-war, according to a video shared on social media by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
It turned out to be a washed-up marijuana bale, also commonly known as “square grouper.”
“Square grouper” is a slang term for drug bales, including marijuana or other narcotics, that was ashore after being discarded or lost at sea.
“I thought it was a Portuguese man-of-war because that plastic part was sticking up,” Gibson told deputies in the video.
Gibson said Zuma continued to show interest in the bale, per the video, which is when he realized it may have been narcotics.
Zuma is a retired narcotics dog trained to detect marijuana, according to Gibson.
Deputies collected the bale, which is being held in the agency’s evidence vault, the sheriff’s office said.
The discovery marks at least the second time in recent months that a marijuana bale has washed up along Jacksonville’s shoreline. In September, a separate 19-pound bale was found on Jacksonville Beach. Authorities have not indicated whether the incidents are connected.
Watch the video on the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office’s Facebook page.
