Have you seen Tomato?
Tortoise last seen ‘riding off’ with man on motorcycle
PETALING JAYA: A banner in the Keramat area of Kuala Lumpur has attracted the attention of motorists since Tuesday.
On it was a notice asking about a missing pet. But it’s not about a cat, dog or parakeet.
“Lost tortoise, anyone who has found him, please return him to us. Lost since 3.30pm Friday, Sept 29, 2017. Your kindness will be appreciated,” said the notice in Bahasa Malaysia. It also has a photograph of the tortoise.
A snapshot of the sign was uploaded by Facebook user Zulkifli Bujang yesterday.
The tortoise’s owner Dina Azmi, 25, said that the male, which weighs about 3kg and as big as half a football, is named “Tomato”.
She received the pet as a gift from a friend two years ago.
“I was at work and only realised Tomato was missing when I came home at night. Maybe the gate was left open during the afternoon as we had guests then. And this was probably how Tomato escaped,” she told mStar Online yesterday.
Dina, who works as a research executive, said that Tomato was allowed to roam free in the compound following advice from a veterinarian to ensure that he grew healthily.
When Tomato went missing, Dina and her family searched the neighbourhood, including the apartments nearby.
“I was told by a security guard that a motorcyclist had stopped and picked up Tomato from the road.
“The man then handed Tomato to the guard. But the guard refused to take him as he was on duty. The motorcyclist then took Tomato away,” she said, adding that the guard said that the motorcyclist was a young Malay man.
Dina said that she had put up six banners and 15 posters around the Keramat area.
“So far, five people called claiming to have seen Tomato. They all had the same story: they saw Tomato walking around our area between 3pm and 4pm on Friday,” she added.