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A grizzly bear that dragged a long-distance cyclist from a tent in Montana and fatally mauled her was shot dead Friday — after wreaking havoc at a nearby home, officials said.
The 400-pound bruin that killed Leah Davis Lokan, 65, of Chico, Calif, was gunned down by federal wildlife workers, who lured it to a chicken coop just after midnight, Greg Lemon of the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks said at a press conference.
“Based on the size of the bear, the color of the bear and the nature of the chicken coop raids, we’re confident we’ve got the offending bear,” Lemon said, according to CBS.
The bloodthirsty bruin — who ate several chickens the day after fatally attacking Lokan — likely ripped the door off a home in the Ovando area Thursday night, leaving behind massive claw marks, Powell County Sheriff Gavin Roselles said in a Facebook post
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Lokan, a registered nurse, was on a 400-mile bike adventure with others when she set up a tent near a post office in the tiny town, outside of Helena, and was attacked early Tuesday.
Another member of her group heard noises, and ran out of his tent to spray the bear — to no avail, officials said.
The animal had entered the camp earlier in the night, prompting the cyclists to remove food from their tents and fall back asleep.
Investigators initially launched a helicopter hunt to find the bear and collected animal DNA from the scene of Lokan’s attack.
They now plan to compare the grizzly DNA to the dead bear’s genetic makeup to confirm it’s the same animal. Officials expect to get back results within three days.
Bear tracks found at the site of the mauling matched those found near the trap officials set Friday morning, Lemon said.
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