Somebody Is Holding My Pet Desert Tortoise Hostage. Is There Anything I Can Do?

Location: Nevada

Hello, I am looking for assistance for a situation I’ve found myself in. Three weeks ago, in the early morning, my tortoise climbed out of the fence that surrounds her enclosure and bulldozed her way through the backyard gate. That same day, on 10/17/2025, a neighbor of mine posted twice seeking the owner of my Desert Tortoise, once without an image, and one with an image that confirms that it’s my tortoise. I found the post two days later on 10/20/2025, and immediately commented confirming that it was my pet, and asking them to contact me, since they left no contact information. The next day, since I still hadn’t received a response, I left another comment checking in on them, and also giving them my email address, asking them to contact me. Another day passed, and I made a post to hopefully garner the attention of the neighbor who had found my tortoise, and a family member had also commented on the neighbors post as well, to no avail. Now, three weeks have passed since we’ve originally tried to contact this person. We’ve made 8 attempts to reach this person via comments, and four attempts via our own posts. On 10/22/2025 a police report had to be filed, because in Nevada, Desert Tortoises are Federally protected species, and I am a legal custodian of one. It is illegal to possess one without having the proper credentials—although that is a law that is rarely enforced.

So far, I’ve sought help from animal control, fish and game, the Nevada volunteer tortoise group that handles all things related to desert tortoises, the police, and local animal shelters. Two weeks ago, I emailed the ring customer service that’s related to the app specifically, and it took them a week to get back to me. They told me to send evidence in a secure file, which I did, and they asked for my contact information that they should email to the original poster, which I provided. It’s now been eight days with radio silence from them, too. I’ve made multiple posts across all types of neighborhood platforms. I’ve printed flyers and have placed them around the doors of practically every house in the neighborhood.

I have no idea who has my tortoise, all I know is that they’re in my neighborhood. They left no contact information on the ring post, and they’ve been completely unresponsive to our every attempt to reach out. Is there anything that I can do? My tortoise has a latent respiratory infection, so not only does she require alternative care, but she’s completely unable to be released into the wild. Brumation (hibernation for reptiles) is coming up very soon, so the time I have to get her back is limited.

I don’t believe the neighbor had bad intentions because they made the posts in the first place, but I’m completely lost on why they’ve gone completely MIA. But after three weeks and all the effort me and my family have put into finding her, I’m not sure anymore… I hope they’re healthy and okay, as well as my tortoise.

Please help, if you can! I don’t know what else I can do…