KANAWHA COUNTY, WV (WOWK) – A West Virginia man has been arrested in connection to a theft investigation after being tracked down by a Kanawha County K-9.

According to the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office, the investigation began Saturday, Maty 27, 2023 when deputies were called to the area of Doc Bailey Road and Kelly Road in Cross Lanes regarding a “shots fired” call.

Deputies say the victim told them he had also been the victim of an ATV theft, and found his missing ATV on a property in that area. According to the KCSO, the victim said when he went to retrieve the ATV, the suspect allegedly fired a shot at him.

The KCSO says the responding deputies then began searching the area when they saw a man running into the woods. Not far from the man, they saw an abandoned ATV in a patch of weeds. According to deputies, the abandoned ATV matched the description of the one that had been stolen.

At that point, deputies say Kanawha County K-9 bloodhound Bailee was deployed to track the suspect. Once she picked up his sent, deputies say Bailee led them to a shed behind a home in the 5200 block of Kelly Road. Deputies say they found the suspect, identified as Brian Walker, 31, of Poca, West Virginia, was hiding beneath the shed.

The KCSO says Walker was arrested and charged with receiving or transferring stolen goods. He was released on a $1,500 bond after being arraigned in Kanawha County Magistrate Court, deputies say.