Law enforcement recovers Indianapolis Zoo’s missing tortoises

INDIANAPOLIS — Local law enforcement has recovered a pair of tortoises that went missing from the Indianapolis Zoo earlier this month.

The zoo announced that the tortoises had been recovered via two Instagram posts. The first of the posts was deleted and replaced with a second, new post. Both posts indicated that the tortoises had been located safe by law enforcement.

Previous reporting indicates zoo personnel noticed the tortoises were missing during a routine morning count on Oct. 12. On Monday, Indiana State Police publicly announced that they believed the two tortoises had been stolen sometime between 10 a.m. on Oct. 11 and 10 a.m. on Oct. 12.

Zoo staff first reported the tortoises missing to state police on Oct. 23. Zoo officials indicated that the species of the two tortoises that went missing are Egyptian and Northern Spider. Per the Indy Zoo, both species of tortoise are considered critically endangered due to the pet trade and poaching.

The tortoises typically reside in the zoo’s desert exhibit. State police indicated that the exhibit is constructed in such a way that it could make it easy for a potential thief to steal them.

Zoo officials have reported that ISP “will be sharing more information shortly” on the missing tortoises. FOX59/CBS4 has reached out to ISP for additional information on the case. State police have indicated that they are working to gather more details for public release.