ASPEN, Colo. — Security cameras at an Aspen hotel captured a bear attacking a security guard by swiping that guard on his back and knocking him to the ground after the guard surprised the bear in the kitchen area.
People reported seeing the bear inside the kitchen of the St. Regis Aspen Resort at around 11 p.m. Monday. The security guard went to investigate and turned a corner, startling the bear, Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) said.
The guard was able to get away from the bear and call 911, but not before suffering scratches to his back, wildlife officials said. The guard was taken to a hospital to be treated for his injuries. He was released from the hospital Tuesday morning, CPW said.
Wildlife officers got to the hotel just after midnight and learned the bear had entered the hotel by going through a series of doors from the courtyard, CPW said.
Officers located the bear near the hotel, but due to public safety concerns they were not able to safely tranquilize and capture the bear, CPW said.
CPW wildlife officers with help from the Aspen Police Department and Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office resumed the search for the bear just after 10 p.m. Tuesday. Wildlife officers spotted the bear near Conner Park, off East Hopkins Avenue. They watched the bear, looking for identifiable markings, and eventually hazed the bear into a tree at the park around 2 a.m. Wildlife officers then tranquilized the bear. They brought the bear down from the tree with the help of an Aspen Fire truck.
“During our initial investigation we gathered witness statements along with photos and videos from hotel security cameras,” said Matt Yamashita, Area Wildlife Manager.
“All played an important part in our investigation. Using the footage provided by the hotel, we were able to confirm the aggressive behavior of the bear and identify unique physical characteristics of the bear that assisted in the proper identification of the offending bear.”
Watch the full raw video below:
In the video, wildlife officers saw a distinctive white patch located on the bear's chest. While it is common to see bears in Aspen, this spot on the bear's chest helped wildlife officers distinguish it from other bears in the area and confirm it was the bear responsible for the attack. Officers did note that, while searching for this bear, eight other bears were seen moving around downtown Aspen.
The boar bear was taken away from the area and humanely euthanized per CPW policy. The bear's body was sent to the CPW Wildlife Health Lab in Fort Collins where a full necropsy will be performed.
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Colorado Outdoors
9NEWS+
9NEWS+ has multiple live daily shows including 9NEWS Mornings, Next with Kyle Clark and 9NEWS+ Daily, an original streaming program. 9NEWS+ is where you can watch live breaking news, weather updates, and press conferences. You can also replay recent newscasts and find videos on demand of our top stories, local politics, investigations and Colorado specific features.
To download 9NEWS+ on Roku search for KUSA.
To download 9NEWS+ on Fire TV search for 9NEWS.