Authorities shot and killed a brown bear cub Monday on Chichagof Island. It’s believed to be one of three responsible for the fatal mauling of a Sitka man over the weekend.
Sitka police Lt. Barry Allen says a team performed a necropsy on the cub, but that the results are pending. A Sitka detective and two Alaska Wildlife Troopers spent Monday and Tuesday on Chichagof, looking for the sow and two cubs spotted in Poison Cove. That’s about 30 miles north of Sitka.
The bears behaved aggressively on Sunday toward some boaters who came ashore to investigate an abandoned skiff on the beach. The partially consumed remains of 54-year-old Tomas Puerta were found nearby.
Allen says once a bear kills and consumes a human, it could become habituated to the behavior.
Ed Ronco is a reporter at KCAW in Sitka.
