Video shows pair killing hibernating bears
March 29, 2019
The Humane Society released a video on Thursday showing an Alaska father and son illegally killing a hibernating bear and her cubs.
The poachers are seen celebrating after they kill the bear and her crying cubs in their den, saying, "They'll never be able to link us to this," and "We go where we want to kill shit."
The video was captured by surveillance cameras set up by wildlife authorities to observe the bears. The poachers were also captured by the camera two days later when they returned to get rid of the cubs' bodies and destroy evidence.
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Drawing attention to rollback of protections
Though killing bears is legal in many parts of Alaska, they are protected in that particular area.
The men committed the crime in April 2018 and were convicted in January 2019. The father, Andrew Renner, was sentenced to three months in jail and was fined $9,000 (€8,020), as well as being ordered to forfeit property including his truck. Renner's hunting license was suspended for 10 years.
The son, Owen Renner, received a suspended sentence and a two-year suspension of his hunting license.
The Humane Society released the video on Thursday to draw attention to Trump administration efforts to roll back the protection of animals, saying, "This brutality could soon be the law of the land on national preserves in Alaska."
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