On a quiet hallway inside an unused office building at the Princeton West Innovation Campus, Officer Robert Voorhees paused just long enough to let his partner, Riley, get excited about their next task. Moments earlier, they had entered the corridor with no idea where the explosive training aid had been hidden. They began working methodically, checking rooms on both sides, Voorhees keeping steady tension on the leash as Riley swept in and out of doorways.
Halfway down the hall, her gait changed. Riley’s steps shortened, her head snapped upward, and she began working faster.
“She did a stutter step,” Voorhees explained later. “She froze for a second, her eyes got crazy, and then she started going faster… she works better the faster she goes.”
A few seconds later, Riley pivoted sharply back toward a wall-mounted mail bin outside Room 109 and sat — a passive alert indicating she had found the target. For Hopewell Township’s first-ever police K-9, it was another clean, confident read. For Voorhees, it was confirmation of something he has said often in recent months: “I trust this dog with my life.”
A First for Hopewell Township
Riley, a two-year-old K-9 who is half German shepherd and half Belgian Malinois, joined the department this summer, becoming Hopewell Township’s first police dog in more than 50 years of full-time policing.
“The first K-9 officer ever in Hopewell Township,” Chief James Rosso said. “This is a newer program that we’re happy to offer… it’s a great benefit to add to the department.”
What the dog brings is not simply additional manpower — it’s a capability Hopewell never had before.
The township sees a steady number of missing-person calls in the Sourlands, where dense woods and steep terrain can complicate searches. Riley is certified to track fresh human scent across distance, through water, snow, and heavy vegetation.
“We deal with a lot of missing persons on the mountains and hills we have,” Rosso said. “This brings the ability to track someone a little quicker.”
Riley is also trained in explosives detection, allowing the department to sweep large public gatherings, special events, and school facilities without waiting for outside support.
“With today’s day and age, it’s important,” Rosso said. “We have big events like Washington’s Crossing… the dog runs through to make sure there’s no explosives.”
On Election Day this year, that capability proved critical statewide.
Answering the Call on Election Day
On November 5, bomb threats were reported at multiple polling sites across New Jersey, prompting a sweeping response by local K-9 teams. Voorhees and Riley were sent to Ewing High School, where a polling location had been shut down.
It was their first real-world explosives deployment.
His description of the scene was understated — people asked if they could just “go back in” — but the work was urgent: ensure the building was safe enough for voting to resume. They cleared the site quickly.
For their role, Voorhees and Riley were among 28 law enforcement teams honored this month with the 2025 Attorney General’s Award for Selfless Service, recognizing their “quick and thorough response” that allowed polling places to reopen safely for voters.
A Decade-Long Dream
Voorhees has been with the Hopewell Township Police Department for 13 years, and in law enforcement for 17. But the dream of becoming a K-9 officer stretches far earlier.
“I’ve wanted to be a canine officer my entire life,” he said. “I have a really embarrassing picture of me as a little kid next to my family dog dressed in a police uniform.”
For nearly 10 years, he tried to bring a K-9 program to Hopewell.
“I’ve been trying for 10 years… I knew this is exactly what I wanted to do since I was a little kid. I wanted to bring it here.”
The turning point came after a bomb threat at the former Har Sinai temple off Denow Road. The department could not secure a bomb dog quickly enough.
“That was the straw that broke the camel’s back,” Voorhees said. “Chief Rosso was like, we’re getting a bomb dog. We cannot leave our community unsafe that day.”
Voorhees wrote a 28-page proposal, researched funding, and made the case for an explosives-and-tracking dog — a dual-purpose specialty supported by the New Jersey State Police training program.
Finding the Right Partner
It took three tries to find Riley.
The first dog, a Labrador shipped from overseas, arrived sick and later became aggressive. “He went after me at my house… I had to make the most difficult call of my life sending the dog back,” Voorhees said.
The second dog lacked drive and repeatedly quit mid-track. “This dog’s going to quit on you in the woods when you’re looking for that kid,” instructors warned.
Then came Riley — a pointy-eared shepherd mix with intelligence, instinct, and the capacity to work hard for long stretches.
Her only weakness, early on, was mild skittishness in crowds. Voorhees has spent months conditioning her through daily interactions, community events, and controlled exposures.
“This one’s perfect,” he said. “Smart, intelligent… and she listens.”
Training, Certification, and the Work Behind the Scenes
Riley and Voorhees began K-9 school in November of last year. They certified in tracking in February and explosives in June — a seven-month process often compared to a full-time job layered on top of patrol shifts.
“I have pictures from training because I figured I’d get to do this once in my entire life,” Voorhees said.
Even now, training hardly stops.
– He must complete one explosives certification day and one tracking certification day every month through the State Police.
– He trains additionally with the Mercer County Sheriff’s K-9 unit.
– And he handles full patrol duties in between.
His take-home vehicle is outfitted for K-9 response, and Riley lives with him, his fiancée, and their child. Riley has her own room.
“I’m available 24/7 if needed,” he said. “When we’re home, I feed her, we hang out, she goes to bed… my entire day is dealing with her.”
Even play is structured work — obedience, control, focus, patience.
“The only fun they should have is doing this,” he said, gesturing toward the training field. “You’re missing the whole aspect of bonding with this animal… the bonding is the best part.”
Capabilities That Reach Beyond Hopewell
Because so few agencies maintain tracking dogs, Voorhees is regularly called to assist other departments throughout the county and state.
“I do a lot more tracking calls pretty much everywhere,” he said. “No one’s really doing it anymore.”
He is also a member of the State Detect and Render Safe Task Force, a specialized statewide explosives unit that supports major events — including preparations for the upcoming World Cup.
A Department Evolving With Its Community
Over the last few years, the police department has worked to grow community engagement and work more collaboratively.
Voorhees thinks the K-9 program reflects that shift and described the department as “progressive police department with the right goals in mind.”
Both the chief and township leadership supported the initiative and the long-term investment behind it. Riley has quickly become a fixture at community events, school safety drills, and large public gatherings.
“Having Riley on our police force is an enormous benefit to the community,” Hopewell Township Mayor Courtney Peters-Manning said. “A K-9 brings capabilities we simply didn’t have before — from tracking missing people in our woods to helping ensure our large public events are safe. It’s a major commitment for any handler, and we’re grateful to Officer Voorhees for stepping into that role. The K-9 program reflects the department’s ongoing focus on community safety and preparedness, and we’re proud to support it.”
Voorhees’ Own Path
Voorhees’ calm, focused presence belies the fact that in 2021, during Hurricane Ida, he and two other officers were swept into a torrent of floodwater while trying to reach stranded motorists. He clung to a tree “ankle over ankle, as a koala would,” the water washing over his face for more than two hours before rescue.
“It’s the kind of lived experience that shapes someone,” he reflected during training. “This is the greatest job. If I can go out anywhere and find a missing kid or some guy who ran from us… it’s the greatest job.”
A Team Built on Trust
Back in the hallway, after Riley’s training find, Voorhees crouched beside her, rewarding her with a burst of praise and an enthusiastic round of tug. In these moments she seems like any family dog, before quickly settling and waiting for whatever came next.
Handlers often repeat a simple mantra: Trust your dog.
Voorhees learned that the hard way — through setbacks, through the long search for the right partner, and finally through the certainty he feels now.
“I trust this dog with my life,” he said again, matter-of-fact, as Riley leaned into him, still buzzing from the find.
For Hopewell Township, that trust has already begun to pay dividends — in safer events, faster searches, strengthened regional cooperation, and a new capability that didn’t exist a year ago.
And for the department’s first K-9 team, it has built a bond that is only just beginning.
“She’s helped me become a better person,” Voorhees said. “My whole goal is that when I leave this department, I want to leave it better than when I got here.”
In many ways, with Riley at his side, he already has.
