PCs Tracy Griffin and Terri Cave were dressed as zebra and monkey when they arrested man for threatening behaviour

A pair of off-duty police officers who made an arrest while dressed as a zebra and a monkey have been commended for their bravery.

PCs Tracy Griffin and Terri Cave were on their way to a fancy dress party when they came across a man yelling threatening abuse in a supermarket in Coventry in March 2014.

The pair, dressed in zebra and monkey onesies, wrestled the man to the ground as he left the Co-op store and told one of the staff to ring 999.

The man was arrested and taken into police custody on suspicion of public order offences, said West Midlands police. The PCs, who are based in Solihull, spent the rest of their evening filing reports at the police station rather than heading to the party.

On hearing the news of the arrest, colleagues tweeted from @SolihullPolice: "Man threatening to kill people didn't expect to be wrestled to the ground by our off-duty officer in a zebra onesie. We go that extra mile."

Brian Eustace, 49, was later charged with public order offences and appeared before magistrates in Coventry in May, where he was given a community order and ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work.

The PCs' actions were described as "brave in the extreme" and "in accordance with the highest traditions of British policing".

At a ceremony in Birmingham – when they were dressed in their official police uniforms – they received a chief constable's commendation from the West Midlands chief constable, Chris Sims, in front of family, friends and colleagues.

Ch Supt Alex Murray, from Solihull police, said: "There was a lot of interest in this particular case for obvious reasons but, joking apart, PCs Griffin and Cave were faced with a very dangerous man in difficult circumstances and they stepped up to the plate.

"Let's not lose focus on the risk they exposed themselves to, without any protection, in tackling this man. Whether they were in fancy dress or not – the fact is they chose to put a member of the public's safety above their own and then cancelled their night out to make sure a professional job was done."Photograph: West Midlands police/PA