Here’s how Merced K-9 Laika celebrated her birthday (Hint: someone was arrested)

It may have been her birthday on Friday, but Merced-area California Highway Patrol K-9 officer Laika did not take the day off.

The 8-year-old dog was called in around 10:30 a.m. to check out a Honda Accord stopped for a minor traffic violation on Interstate 5 south of Highway 140, according to Officer Eric Zuniga.

Officers said the driver was acting suspicious so Laika was called to the scene, where she sniffed out a shoebox filled with more than $100,000 derived from the sale of narcotics.

The driver was identified as Ivan Gonzalez, 24, of Federal Way, Wash., Zuniga said. He was arrested on suspicion of possession of money used in the sale of narcotics, officers said.

He was questioned at the Los Banos CHP office and released pending charges from the Merced County District Attorney’s Office, CHP said.

This story was originally published September 1, 2017 at 6:09 PM with the headline "Here’s how Merced K-9 Laika celebrated her birthday (Hint: someone was arrested)."