Human DNA under claws of euthanized bear confirms culpability in attack on elderly man

Officials at the University of Wyoming Forensics Lab confirmed to Colorado Parks and Wildlife officers that the bear submitted for DNA testing was the one that attacked a 71-year-old man at his home in Pine on Monday night.

The forensics report determined that the euthanized bear had human protein under its claws, indicating that it was the bear that attacked and scratched an elderly man Monday night, according to a release.

Wildlife officials found the bear 900 yards from the attack site and euthanized it early Tuesday morning.

The necropsy conducted Tuesday by CPW’s health lab determined that the bear was about 10 years old and weighed 215 pounds. The necropsy revealed a significant amount of trash in the sow’s stomach.

Read the original press release from CPW here.