Police Officer Craig E. Lehner

October 13, 2017

Police Officer Craig Lehner drowned while conducting a training a dive in the Niagara River, in the area of Broderick Park and Bird Island Pier.

Members of the agency’s Underwater Recovery Team were conducting a regularly scheduled training exercise in swift water currents. Officer Lehner entered the water as part of the training but failed to surface after his safety cable broke while he was submerged.

Officer Lehner’s body was recovered on October 17th, 2017, during a massive recovery effort involving over 20 local, state, federal, and Canadian law enforcement agencies.

Officer Lehner was a veteran of the Army National Guard. He had served with the Buffalo Police Department for nine years and was assigned to the Canine Unit. He is survived by his mother and sister.