By Tim Binnall
Indiana authorities are trying to get to the bottom of a strange mystery involving two endangered turtles recently taken from the Indianapolis Zoo. According to a local media report, the creatures in question are an Egyptian tortoise and a Northern Spider tortoise that lived in a desert exhibit at the facility. The two types of turtles are considered endangered due to habitat loss, which has made them prized among poachers and exotic animal traders. As such, zoo personnel were understandably concerned when a standard animal count at the zoo earlier this month found that the two tortoises had gone missing.
As for how someone could steal two endangered turtles from the facility, Indiana State Police's Captain Ron Galaviz explained that the creatures do not conform to the classic depiction of a tortoise as a sizeable reptile "that you see people sitting on and riding around on." On the contrary, these particular creatures are small enough that they could "probably fit in the palm of your hand." That scenario is precisely what police believe occurred at the zoo, positing that someone simply reached into the enclosure and snatched the diminutive animals before making a hasty exit from the site with the turtles in tow.
One aspect of the case that has raised eyebrows is that the zoo waited an inexplicable 11 days before reporting the situation to authorities. While the facility has not explained why their response was nearly as slow as the stolen animals themselves, former FBI investigator Doug Kouns speculated to an Indiana television station that there may have been suspicions that the heist was an inside job and, when no one on staff fessed up to the theft, police were eventually enlisted to look into the curious case. To that end, Galaviz conceded that tracking down the turtles will be no easy task, musing that when it comes to what has become of the creatures since being stolen nearly two weeks ago, "the possibilities run the gamut."