BOULDER COUNTY, Colo. — Wildlife officials said they are “pretty confident” the black bear suspected of attacking a sleeping teenager in Boulder County was caught and put down on Monday morning, Colorado Parks and Wildlife said.
The bear was found near the campground where a 19-year-old was attacked early Sunday morning at Glacier View Ranch near Ward, northwest of Boulder.
The bear was tracked by wildlife officials and the victim, who has only been identified as Dylan, was able to identify it.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife said witness descriptions and the fact the bear returned to the same area within 24 hours make officials certain they got the right animal.
A necropsy will be performed to make the connection to the bear and Dylan’s clothing, Colorado Parks and Wildlife said. It will take up to one week for the test results to come back.
Dylan, a staff member at the ranch, was not in a tent as he slept under the stars with other camp staffers early Sunday morning. He said he woke up when the bear wrapped its paw around him and bit his head.
“I woke up to a crunching sound and me being drug. And I thought it was a dream at first, then I realized it wasn’t,” Dylan said.
He realized that crunching sound was the bear’s teeth biting into his skull.
“The bear grabbed my head with his paw and pulled it. … Then, it grabbed the back of my head,” Dylan said. “I did not know what was going on. Once I saw the bear, heard it’s breath, it was pretty scary.”
The animal dragged Dylan about 10 feet out of his sleeping bag. Dylan told officials he hit the bear and other members of the group also helped fight off the bear before it ran away.
Dylan suffered big gashes on his head that required nine staples. He was taken to Boulder Community Health to be treated and was later released.