ORLAND PARK, IL. - The search for Michelangelo, a runaway
22-pound desert tortoise, is proceeding in suburban Chicago.
Kim Heinemann, an Eastern Illinois University student
from Orlando Park, Ill., says her pet of six years escaped
last week while she was visiting her parents' home. She
told the Chicago Sun-Times "Mikey" usually resides in a
"turtle-proof" enclosure in Charleston, Ill. The desert
tortoise apparently burrowed under the fence in her
parent's yard and sped off at 7 mpd -- that's miles per day.
He was last seen Thursday when traffic stopped to let him
cross a street. Heinemann is offering a $250 reward for
the lumbering reptile who is about 12-inches long. A flier
describes "Mikey" as "shy but friendly."
