Lowell- Indiana State Police Superintendent Douglas Carter recently announced the promotion of Trooper Justin A. Hansen to the rank of Sergeant in the Laboratory Division. Sgt. Hansen will serve as a Crime Scene Investigator (C.S.I.) in the Lowell District. Sergeant Hansen earned this promotion through written testing and a competitive interview process.
Sgt. Hansen is a native of Valparaiso, IN, graduating from Boone Grove High School in 2009 before joining the Indiana National Guard. In 2013, he was selected to attend and graduated from the 73rd Indiana State Police Recruit Academy located in Plainfield, IN. After graduating, Hansen was assigned to the Lowell Post. In 2019, Hansen received the “combat action award” for an incident that occurred in Porter County.
During his tenure with the department, Sgt. Hansen has been an FTO (Field Training Officer), background investigator, first aid instructor, and a member of the ACP (All Crimes Policing Team). In 2018, Hansen became a K9 handler and was partnered with Nikan. The two have become well known for their work together the past 4 years making several large drug and cash seizures. Prior to being assigned to Hansen, Nikan was first assigned to Sgt. Steve Caylor, prior to Caylor’s promotion to sergeant.
With the promotion of Trooper Justin Hansen to Sergeant, Nikan has officially retired and will spend his retirement with his handler. K9 Nikan was always one of the quieter K9’s, so when asked for comment, he maintained his typical stoic look, grabbed his donut toy, and jumped on top of his favorite table. He has a thing for sitting on tables.
Sergeant Hansen resides in Porter County with his family.
Nikan’s Career Statistics
Marijuana: 1,126 lbs.
Methamphetamine: 12 lbs.
Ecstasy: 18 lbs.
Cocaine: 38 lbs.
Crack: 4 lbs.
Heroin: 12 lbs.
Currency: $2,397,293.00
