A worker at a restaurant in Houston, Texas, was able to solve an alleged turtle kidnapping mystery by using social media, according to local outlet ABC13.
Javier Montemayor, who tends the bar and manages the Cedar Creek Café’s Instagram, told the outlet he discovered that a semi-regular customer, who has not been identified, had taken turtles that live in Turkey Gulley, a drainage creek that runs through the establishment’s property.
Montemayor told ABC13 that on Wednesday, the customer came into the establishment and began talking about making turtle soup with the local reptiles.
“I was in shock. I thought it was a joke, ‘I’m going to eat your turtles,’” he told the outlet.
Montemayor said security footage showed he had brought fishing lines and bait with him.
Another employee reported witnessing the man carrying at least one turtle to his truck, prompting Montemayor to track him down on Instagram.
ABC13 reports that since-deleted posts from the man discussed taking the turtles and saying that he would make turtle soup.
Montemayor said he spoke with the man via Instagram DMs and demanded that he return the turtles to the creek, but said the man argued that Turkey Gulley is public property, and wrote, “Buy me 20 (pounds) of turtle meat. I’ll come drop them off right now.”
In a statement to ABC13 on the legalities of harvesting turtles, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department said that an individual must have a valid hunting license and landowner consent to do so, and that, “It is considered unlawful to take or possess any freshwater turtles from the wild for commercial purposes or to possess more than six (6) individuals of any species of freshwater turtle from the wild. These regulations can be found in the Texas Outdoor Annual (PDF page number 14).”
Montemayor said that others came together on Instagram to support Cedar Creek and helped to change the man’s mind, according to ABC13.
The man reportedly brought back the turtles on Wednesday at approximately 10 p.m. in a Yeti cooler and returned them to the bridge.
ABC13 reported that they reached out to the man after he returned the turtles, and he said that it was a joke, and that he never planned to eat the turtles.
Newsweek reached out to Cedar Creek Café via a form on their website, and Montemayor via Instagram DMs for comment.
Turtle soup became a popular dish in the United States in the late 19th and early to mid-20th centuries, even being served to President Andrew Jackson in the White House, according to NPR.
According to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s magazine, there are more than 28 species of turtles in Texas, and the reason the state is home to so many turtles is because of its diverse geography, topography, and geology.
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s magazine also said that threats to turtles include habitual destruction, turtle fishing, and people’s desires to own them as pets.
The restaurant told ABC13 that they are happy the turtles have been returned and are considering putting up a “turtle cam” along Turkey Gulley to prevent future turtle fishing instances.
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