CLEVELAND — A Canton police officer who was fired last year for siccing his K-9 on a man as a crowd of residents raised objections to a traffic stop was ordered to be reinstated by an arbitrator, city records show.

Arbitrator Jenifer Flesher last week issued a ruling in favor of the officer, Nicholas Casto, following a two-day arbitration hearing held in February.

Casto was terminated in June 2024 for multiple alleged violations of department policy related to the "deployment" of his K-9 on Kieven Conver, whom police accused of taunting Casto's K-9 and attempting to rile up the "aggressive and disorderly" crowd.

In the 28-page decision, Flesher noted Casto's "stellar record as a police officer," with no prior discipline history aside from a two-day suspension for an incident in Apr

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