Suspected tortoise thief arrested, but family pet remains missing

Police have arrested a man suspected of stealing a beloved pet from the family’s own yard in broad daylight.

The pet, a rescued tortoise who has been with its family for about five years, is still unaccounted for, the family says.

The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed that the suspect in the brazen theft in Panorama City was apprehended Monday around noon at an undisclosed location.

One of the pet’s owners confirmed that the tortoise had not been located despite the arrest and urged the public to keep an eye out for it.

Video shared with KTLA showed the suspect, who remains unidentified, reaching into the front gate of a home on Brimfield Avenue around 3 p.m. Sunday.

The man, whom the tortoise owner called “heartless and evil,” can then be seen flipping the reptile onto its shell and removing the animal from the yard; he is then caught on camera violently attacking it.

Jennifer Tapia said that she and her family keep their tortoises outside regularly. After not being able to find the missing tortoise in their yard, they viewed security footage and discovered the vicious act.

“It’s sad to know that this is happening in our community and that someone could do this to an animal,” Tapia said.

The family has a second tortoise that was uninjured. Anyone with information about the missing tortoise is urged to contact local police.