Russian Hunters Slay Bear Suspected of Killing Two, RIA Reports

Hunters in Russia’s far east have shot a bear and three cubs suspected of killing a 19-year-old woman and her father, RIA Novosti reported.

The two victims, who weren’t identified by name or nationality, were fatally mauled yesterday near a river in the Kamchatka region, the news agency reported.

Professional hunters found and shot a female brown bear and her three year-old cubs today, the report said, citing an unidentified local wildlife official. They found what appeared to be human remains in the animals’ stomachs, the agency reported, citing the official.

The estimated 18,000 brown bears that live on the Kamchatka Peninsula can weigh as much as 700 kilograms (1,500 pounds) according to RIA. Several attacks are reported each year, with one fatal incident last year and three people killed by bears in Kamchatka in 2009, the report said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Scott Rose in Moscow at rrose10@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Balazs Penz at bpenz@bloomberg.net.