ANGOLA, Ind. (WISH) — Two trespassing suspects were arrested after fleeing from law enforcement and attempting to drown a K-9 who tried to stop them.

The attack against K-9 Klara happened after deputies were called to a home in the 3900 block of East County Road 200 North around 3:30 p.m. April 8 to investigate a trespassing incident. A 911 caller had reported that a male and female subject were found on the property without the owner’s permission.

That house is in Scott Township, right outside of Angola.

When they arrived, they found the two, 31-year-old Skyler Robertson from Lookout Mountain, Georgia, and 35-year-old Hollie Richter of Fremont, Indiana, being confronted by the property owner.

One of the K-9 units tried to talk with the suspects, but they fled on foot into a wooded area.

Deputies and other responding officers chased after Robertson and Richter. The sheriff’s office also said the property owner jumped in his utility vehicle and assisted in the chase.

They caught up to the suspects, giving several commands for them to stop or a K-9 would be released. The two kept running, and K-9 Klara gave chase to the couple.

Richter immediately stopped and surrendered herself to deputies, while Robertson kept running from Klara and the deputies.

Klara finally caught Robertson as he ran into a large creek. Police say Robertson then grabbed Klara by the collar and shoved her underwater in “an attempt to drown the dog.”

Klara let go of Robertson to try to get out of the water, but she bit him again as Robertson ran off. Klara’s handler called her off of the attack for her own safety.

Robertson tried to run again before being caught by Indiana State Police.

Robertson and Richter were taken to a nearby hospital for medical evaluation before being taken to the Steuben County jail.

The two are facing the following preliminary felony and misdemeanor charges:

• Robertson – two counts of resisting law enforcement, one count of interfering or striking a law enforcement animal; charges on an active arrest warrant for failure to appear on resisting law enforcement and marijuana possession.
• Richter – one count of resisting law enforcement; charges on active warrants for failure to return to lawful detention, methamphetamine possession, and escaping from community corrections.

They were being held at the jail without bond. Pretrial conferences for Robertson and Richter were slated for June.

After the attack, Klara was taken to a veterinarian to be treated for the water in her lungs. The office said on Monday that Klara had made a full recovery and was back on the job.

Angola is in northeastern Indiana, two and a half hours from downtown Indianapolis.