A man from Marion, Montana, told authorities that he cut off the claws of the grizzly bear as a souvenir after he shot the animal in self-defense. According to him and according to court records, he was sure that the bear will certainly eat it.
35-year-old Bryan Berg on January 17 in U.S. district court in the state of Missoula has pleaded guilty to illegal transportation of claws of the grizzly bear, which is a misdemeanor, reports the Flathead Beacon. Judge Berg sentenced to three years probation and fined him $ 5,000.
Dangerous grizzly bear Credit: Pixabay
Grizzly bears in Northwest Montana are evaluated as a species, posing a threat to people.
Prosecutors said that Berg shot and killed the bear in self-defense in the wilderness Bob Marshall in 2017. He snapped his claws and pushed the carcass off the side of a mountain. According to prosecutors, Berg didn’t report the shooting to law enforcement authorities, and later brought bear claws in Washington.
After questioning in March 2018, Berg confessed to the crime, he also told his interrogators bear claws, pictures and video from the scene.
«I was so angry that he was going to eat me, said Berg investigators, according to the records. — <…> Yes, I cut his claws. I did it. I wanted to leave them in memory».
He added that he reported the incident because he was «scared» and said that he knew that to cut off the claws of a bear illegally. «I was hoping never to see you,» he said to the agents of the Service of protection of fish resources and wildlife, US investigating the case.
Initially, Berg was also charged that he failed to report the shooting of a grizzly bear for five days. This charge was dismissed as part of the agreement on the admission of guilt signed in December between the Berg and the Prosecutor’s office.
