A male bear was shot and killed by police just hours after it fatally attacked a 22-year-old Rutgers student in a nature preserve in New Jersey.
Darsh Patel became the first person to be killed by a bear in New Jersey when he was attacked in September, NJ.com reports.
According to the NY Post, Patel and four friends were hiking through the Apshawa Preserve in West Milford, NJ when they spotted the 300-pound bear lumbering through the woods toward them.
Patel was among those who pulled out cell phones and began snapping pictures as the bear approached.
A police report said the men attracted the bear’s attention by taking pictures.
“They stopped and took photographs of the bear with their cellphones and the bear began walking towards them,” said the police report obtained by NJ.com.
After snapping five pictures the men began walking away, but the bear followed them. When the bear came within 15 feet of the group, the 5 friends fled in separate directions.
After regrouping, four of them realized Patel was missing, and called the police.
After a 2-hour search, police found Patel’s body in the woods with the bear hovering nearby. Police shot and killed the bear. A necropsy later revealed the bear had consumed human flesh, blood and clothing. Human blood was found on the bear’s paws.
Patel’s cell phone was recovered nearby with fang marks on it. West Milford Police released Patel’s cell phone photos on Tuesday.
