SOUTH CHARLESTON, WV (WOWK) — A Chapmanville police officer is on administrative leave after a K-9 went missing on April 11.

Chapmanville Police Chief Allan Browning tells 13 News that Marcus Dudley has been on leave since the incident was reported.

They say administrative action will be taken after the investigation by the South Charleston Police Department.

South Charleston Police have been searching for the two- to three-year-old K-9 “Chase” since last week, and they said in a release today that the handler, Officer Marcus Dudley’s statements have been inconsistent.

The Chapmanville Police Department said on April 11 that K-9 Chase jumped the fence at his home in the area of 2nd Avenue in South Charleston. When his handler, Officer Marcus Dudley, went to check on him, only his collar and the chain he was attached to were left.

SCPD says they started working on the case at the request of the Chapmanville Police Department on April 12. They determined that Chase did not escape from Dudley’s yard, and he was not stolen from the yard.

“Basically the original allegation of the dog being left out in the yard and then either getting out or being taken we know for a fact based on our investigation that that is not true that did not happen,” said South Charleston Police Captain Andrew Gordon.

The Chapmanville Police Department is aware of SCPD’s findings. Gordon says that, depending on the result of SCPD’s investigation, there could be criminal charges.

South Charleston PD is asking the public to continue to search for Chase or contact them with any information they may have about the K-9’s disappearance.

“Our biggest concern at this point is to try and find Chase,” Gordon said. “I think that’s what everybody wants to do. We want to find out. Hopefully, he is still alive and we can find him that would be great news for everybody. Chase is like an officer for the Chapmanville Police Department. He’s family for them. They’d like to know what happened to him.”

Chase was only with the Chapmanville Police Department for about a month and is fully trained in narcotics.