Pitt County Sheriff's Office K-9 dies in hot car

The Pitt County Sheriff’s Office says one of its K-9s died after being left in a hot car.

Deputies said bomb detection K-9 "Chilli" died on June 11.

The sheriff's office said it launched an investigation and found that the death was an accident.

It did not provide specific details about the investigation or the reasoning behind the conclusion. The sheriff’s office did not say how long the dog was left in the vehicle.

WITN reported the high temperature that day was 99 degrees at the Pitt-Greenville Airport.

Officials said the K-9's handler was on duty at the time and that he had served Pitt County for years. The sheriff's office did not name the deputy, citing "confidential records."

The sheriff's office said it is now pushing Pitt County commissioners to give them more funding to buy more deputy vehicles with extra safety features that monitor temperatures inside the vehicle to protect K-9s. It said it already has vehicles with the tech, but could not replace all of the K-9 unit vehicles due to budget reasons. 

It said the vehicle Chilli died in did not have that technology. 

Chilli joined the team in May 2025. The sheriff’s office said it did not receive federal funding for Chilli or her training.