OVERLAND, Mo. — He's smart, fast and extremely loyal to his partner, Overland Police Corporal Chris Fanning.
"He's a big boy, but he's a great dog. Great family pet, but then when it comes to work, he's turned on and it's awesome," said Corporal Fanning.
The canine cop getting nothing but praise is Tzar.
The 4-year-old, 90-pound German Shepherd hit the streets three years ago and Tzar has been capturing all kinds of criminals ever since.
"We got him from the Czech Republic as a puppy. He's great at tracking. Great at narcotics and great at criminal apprehension. He's just an all-around great police dog," said Tzar's partner.
Last Saturday the crime-fighting canine and his fellow officers heard someone broke into West Overland Bible Church near Ashby and Midland.
Police say a new, doorbell security system at the church caught the culprit on camera.
Officers initially searched the church for about 25 minutes, but they couldn't find the suspected burglar.
In fact, they were about to leave when a persistent Tzar sniffed out a guy hiding in a sacred place.
"He heard the dog in there. He head the police radios going off. He heard our announcements. He was just hoping that maybe we wouldn't find him and you know luckily we had the dog. Tzar has a nose like no other. We ended up taking apart part of the church's stage and we sent the dog into the baptismal pool and that's when he apprehended the suspect," said Corporal Chris Fanning.
Police say Tzar tracked 36-year-old Aaron Coffey under the church's altar stage in a baptismal pool. Police also say Coffey confessed to breaking into the Overland church three times and stealing audio-video equipment, cash and other items.
Prosecutors charged Coffey with burglary and stealing.
"They'll see the dog and they take their chances and you know most likely you're not gonna outrun the dog," said Corporal Fanning.
A dog that has four titanium teeth.
"He had chipped one of his teeth when he was a puppy, so they had to put a cap on it so he wouldn't lose his tooth and then he started to wear down another one chewing on things, so they capped it. We ended up capping all four of his canines," added Corporal Fanning.
Tzar's crime-fighting record so far has impressed his partners.
"We're praying he has a long career. He's a great dog and we love him," added Corporal Fanning.
