The police have formed special teams to investigate the case of a missing Aldabra giant tortoise, that is suspected to have been stolen in the month of November from The Madras Crocodile Bank Trust. The Mamallapuram police have registered a case under section 379 of the Indian Penal Code (theft).
The Aldabra giant tortoise is one of the largest tortoises in the world, and is one of the longest living ones. Police said that there were four such tortoises at the Madras Crocodile Bank. “The staff of the organisation claim that each tortoise costs around ₹15 lakh and weighs around 60 kilogramṣ,” said a police source.
Police said that the accused have stolen the tortoise from a location where there is no CCTV. “The tortoises were kept in an enclosure that has a hip-level compound wall. Hence we are checking the cameras on the road to check for the miscreants. We have formed special teams,” said a police source.
Mamallapuram police inspector Vadivel Murugan said that the police have collected details of the staff members and will be checking their call records to check if anyone had connived with the robbers. “The staff of the Madras Crocodile Bank lodged a complaint a day after the tortoise went missing,” said Mr. Murugan who is investigating the case. “We expect a breakthrough soon,” he added.
A staff member of the Madras Crocodile Bank Trust said there were now three remaining tortoises. “Such an incident has never happened before. We will be increasing the height of the wall, increasing security personnel and also redoing CCTV cameras on the premises,” said the staff member.
