The current killing of a younger black bear by a house owner close to Lake Tahoe has infuriated residents, together with neighbors who dispute the person’s story.
The deadly taking pictures occurred round 1:30 p.m. on Memorial Day in an unincorporated neighborhood of El Dorado County, about 2 miles south of Lake Tahoe Airport.
Steve Gonzalez, a spokesman for the California Division of Fish and Wildlife, mentioned the person informed investigators he was in his lounge together with his canine when a bear entered the house.
“He tried getting up and scaring off the bear by yelling at it and waving his arm, but the bear was acting in a menacing fashion,” Gonzalez mentioned. “So, he retrieved his rifle that was nearby and shot the bear twice.”
A California Fish and Wildlife warden investigated the taking pictures of the younger bear, and no fees have been filed.
(Bogdan Yamkovenko)
He mentioned the wounded bear ran off and climbed up a tree — however fell to the bottom due to its accidents.
“The man approached the bear, saw that it was suffering and humanely euthanized it,” Gonzalez mentioned. The person was not injured.
Gonzalez mentioned a Fish and Wildlife warden investigated the taking pictures, and no fees have been filed.
However the killing of the younger bear has angered some residents, together with Ann Bryant, director of the Bear League, a nonprofit based mostly within the Lake Tahoe Basin.
She mentioned two members of the league have been despatched to the neighborhood to doc what had occurred after receiving a name from a distraught neighbor who had witnessed the taking pictures.
Bryant mentioned the crew members discovered from the neighbors that the bear was by no means fully inside the home and that the house owner had beforehand shot one other bear.
She mentioned crew members tried to talk to the warden however have been largely ignored. The taking pictures occurred, she famous, at a time of 12 months when younger bears are parting from their moms and studying to stay on their very own.
When she discovered that the warden concluded that the taking pictures was self-defense and sought no legal fees, she was furious.
“They believe him rather than all the neighbors who saw it and who know him and who have heard his discussions about how he feels about bears and know about the other killing,” she mentioned. “It’s disappointing the department of wildlife would just turn a blind eye.”
Gonzalez mentioned he didn’t know whether or not the house owner had been concerned in different bear shootings.
A neighbor who witnessed the taking pictures, Bogdan Yamkovenko, 43, mentioned the small bear had spent a lot of the day within the neighborhood. He mentioned it was about 1:30 p.m. when he seen the bear come down from a tree he was napping on.
On the time, Yamkovenko was standing within the rear upstairs deck of his dwelling when he seen the little bear standing by his neighbor’s again door. He mentioned he tried to make noises utilizing his barbecue grill however the bear didn’t react.
Shortly after, he noticed the bear poke his head contained in the neighbor’s dwelling, suggesting that the door was left midway open or opened all the way in which.
“He inched his way in, getting further and further inside, but he never went all the way in,” he mentioned. “You always saw a part of the bear.”
He then noticed the bear step again, flip round, run off and climb up the tree he had been napping on earlier.
“That’s when I heard the first shot,” he mentioned.
Yamkovenko ran all the way down to his neighbor’s home, hoping to get him to cease taking pictures. As he made his manner round his neighbor’s home, he heard a second shot.
When Yamkovenko reached his neighbor, he informed him to cease taking pictures and that the Fish and Wildlife Division would maintain the bear.
“He said: ‘Nah, I need to put it out of its misery.’”
Yamkovenko mentioned all three gunshots he heard occurred outdoors, however when the warden got here to talk to him, he was informed that the neighbor mentioned he had fired 4 occasions.
The warden “told us something didn’t add up about the neighbor’s story because the neighbor kept saying there were four shots and that he shot the bear inside the house,” Yamkovenko mentioned.
When he discovered that the case was closed, Yamkovenko known as the warden, livid. He mentioned the warden has not returned his name.
Gonzalez mentioned he had heard claims in regards to the bear not being inside the home however defended the warden’s findings.
“He’s a trained officer, a state police officer and has taken an oath to uphold his duties,” Gonzalez mentioned of the warden. “And you know, people who work for Fish and Wildlife are dedicated to preserving wildlife for future generations.
“I trust him. We trust him, we have a lot of confidence in him,” he added. “He went out there to personally investigate it and found what the homeowner was saying was true and decided there was no need to go further than this.”
Bryant mentioned she’s going to proceed to look into the matter till there may be justice for the bear.
