Slow and steady cracks the case.
Slow and steady cracks the case.
A Queens man pleaded guilty Thursday to criminal possession of a 17-year-old tortoise that disappeared from the Alley Pond Environmental Center in July 2017 and was found in Connecticut a week later.
According to prosecutors, staffers at the environmental center noticed a hole in the rear fence near the tortoise habitat on July 16, and saw that the tortoise, named Millenium (cq) was missing.
Officials said Shawn Waters, 37, of East Elmhurst stole the rare African spurred tortoise and traded him for $300 and a musk turtle from a Connecticut man he hooked up with on Craigslist.
Suspected tortoise thief’s mom says case is getting ‘ridiculous’
When the Connecticut man learned that his new prize was missing from the Queens center, he contacted police who raced over to recover the 95-pound reptile valued at approximately $2,500.
“Millenium the tortoise is safely back within the confines of his habitat,” said Queens DA Richard Brown.
Waters faces six months in jail when he is sentenced Jan. 18.
