It happened at about 3:30 pm Thursday in Oakhurst along road 425B after a chase that started in the town.
Madera County Sheriff's deputies initially responded to a hit-and-run driver behind the wheel of a stolen truck.
An Oakhurst man, who asked us not to share his identity, says he was out shopping when he saw his stolen truck at this shopping center.
He says he immediately decided to chase the thief down.
"When I came out of O'Reillys and saw it there. I said we're getting the truck back today and we did," the man explained.
The wild chase went all through the Oakhurst with the suspect even ramming the car the victim was in.
It finally ended in a neighborhood on Road 425 B when the suspect, now identified as 41-year old Allen Scott Williams, got out of the truck and ran.
That's when sheriff's deputies stationed at the base of the mountain deployed K9 Obie to chase him down.
They say moments later, Williams turned around and fired a shotgun right at the two year old Dutch Shepherd.
"Our beloved canine OB is just riddled with shotgun pellets all throughout his torso very concerning situation," said Madera County Sheriff Tyson Pogue.
Deputies fired back, hitting Williams.
Williams was on probation for felony possession of ammunition and had several warrants for his arrest.
"This guy he is a career criminal. He is known for vehicle theft. He has no disregard for public safety. He was a dangerous individual and we're extremely lucky that no deputies were injured," said Sheriff Pogue.
The sheriff says that's thanks to Obie, who is now being hailed a hero.
"They K9 came up to contact the suspect and instead of shooting at the deputies, the suspect shot the canine so in this instance can I know he was a hero he potentially saved a deputy's life," Sheriff Pogue said.
But Obie isn't the only hero in this story.
After Obie was shot, Nick McBeath, who is a sheriff's search and rescue volunteer, sprung into action.
He loaded Obie into his car and rushed him down the hill to meet a deputy who drove the beloved K-9 the rest of the way to this North Fresno pet hospital..
"That dog wears the same star as I do we just act we have to get the dog into the car. He actually jumped out of the canine unit that he was in with his bandage on, and we did load him into my car. He was out of his comfort zone," said McBeath.
"Obie is a strong dog. He's a deputy, he's going to pull through."
If anyone would like to support K9 Obie during this time, donations can be made to the Madera County Sheriff's Foundation in the following ways:
- PayPal: @MaderaCountySheriffsFoundation
- Venmo: @mcs-foundation
- Check: Madera County Sheriff's Foundation
- In Person: 2370 W Cleveland Ave., Suite 108 #201, Madera, CA 93637
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