What took you so long? Moment police officers catch enormous ‘runaway’ tortoise… a mile from its home

• The giant African sulcata tortoise, known as Titan, fled from his enclosure 
• The nine-stone pet managed to make it one mile across Kesgrave, near Ipswich
• Suffolk Police arrived to rescue the animal and drove it back to its owner

Shello ‘ello ‘ello, what’s going on here then… police officers pounce on a fugitive who broke out of his cage and led them on a low-speed chase.

Fortunately for the law-abiding citizens of Suffolk, the escapee was more on-the-crawl than on-the-run.

The giant African sulcata tortoise, known as Titan, fled from his enclosure and made it a mile across town before he was spotted by a startled member of the public.

The giant African sulcata tortoise, known as Titan, fled from his enclosure and made it a mile across Kesgrave, near Ipswich before he was spotted by a startled member of the public

With a top speed of around 0.3mph, it was an escape plan doomed to failure.

But it took three officers to lift the 35-year-old, nine-stone pet into a van and drive him home in Kesgrave, near Ipswich.

Owner Richard Aston, 35, described the incident as a ‘mystery’ because Titan had not broken through his shelter.

‘Maybe he teleported there. There was no sign of the fence being broken and he can’t jump over it – it’s 3ft high,’ he said.

It took three officers to lift the 35-year-old, nine-stone pet into a van and drive him home to owner Richard Aston

Suffolk Police posted pictures of his capture online, saying: ‘Thanks again to vigilant members of public in locating this absconder.’

The force also joked that the animal was ‘too large for the van cell so had to travel wagon side’, adding the hashtag ‘slowjustice’.

The African sulcata, or spurred tortoise, comes from the southern edge of the Sahara desert and is the third largest species of tortoise in the world.

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