Note: we are republishing this story, which originally made the news in May 2016.

A Mississippi K9 is being hailed a hero after he saved the life of his partner, Hancock Sherriff’s Deputy Todd Frazier, during an ambush attack.

A manhunt was launched for three suspects who beat Deputy Frazier and cut him with a box cutter.

Speaking to the Clarion-Ledger, Chief Deputy Don Bass said: “They told him they were going to slit his throat, and they were dragging him toward the woods.”

However, Lucas, a black Belgian Malinois, chased the suspects before they could carry out their threat.

According to authorities, Frazier activated the button that opens his vehicle’s door and released Lucas. Sherriff Ricky Adam stated that Lucas bit at least one, possibly two, of the assailants.

“We don’t know how many he got, we just know he had blood all over him,” he told the Clarion-Ledger.

The attack occurred after Frazier got out of his vehicle to inspect a blue Lincoln Town car with a darker vinyl top that was parked at a rest stop. The car’s lights were off, and the driver appeared to be alone.

“When he got out, two other people came out of the woods right by the vehicle, and he backed up and fell, and it was on then,” Sherriff Adam told the Clarion-Ledger.