THE first police dog in Britain to be used solely for crime prevention work has died aged 14.

Jet, a black Labrador, was recruited by Durham Police in 1990 to spearhead the launch of the Say No To Strangers campaign, which reached thousands of primary school children in the force area.

He was only 18-months-old when he was given to the force by a family on North Tyneside.

Jet would bark on cue to reinforce the safety message and was popular with schoolchildren who, after reading about him in a colouring book, thought he could talk.

He went into retirement with handler PC Geoff Hopps in 1996.

Last month, with Jet's sight failing and having being diagnosed with senile dementia, the decision was taken to put him to sleep.

Geoff said: "He was very much part of the family and we shed tears when he went.

"The decision to have him put to sleep was heartbreaking, but it was the only compassionate thing to do."