Wandering tortoise back with Md. owner
Saturday - 7/14/2012, 1:16pm ET
FREDERICK, Md. - A wandering African tortoise is back with its owner in Maryland after a nine-day, two-state odyssey.
The Frederick News-Post reports ( http://bit.ly/NOHlkC) that Chester the tortoise disappeared from his owner's property last week and ended up in Pennsylvania.
Bill Athey says July 4 was the last time he saw his 12-year-old tortoise. An electric worker, Steven Warfield, contacted the News-Post on July 6 to say a co- worker had found a "giant turtle" in the woods when the two were part of a crew working to restore electricity.
Warfield sold the tortoise for $350 to a wildlife enthusiast, Michael Hillman of Emmitsburg, who took the tortoise to a friend's farm in Pennsylvania. Hillman later learned through a nature preserve that Athey was looking for his pet, and Athey picked Chester up Friday.
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Information from: The Frederick (Md.) News-Post, http://www.fredericknewspost.com
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