Student Killed By Black Bear In Northern NJ

A 22 year old Rutgers student was killed by a black bear while hiking in Passiac County, NJ on Sunday. Darsh Patel of Edison was hiking with four friends at the Apshawa Preserve when he was attacked by the bear. Patel may have sprained an ankle and was seperated from the rest of the group. The male bear was reportedly 4 years old and close to 300 pounds. He was seen guarding the body before being shot by an officer. The cause for the attack remains unkown. The hikers apparently had granola bars and water on them but there are no indications that they were feeding the bear.

West Milford Police Chief Tim Storbeck said..

There was a bear that was circling the area that would not leave the victim. The search and rescue team that had been back there was clapping their hands, trying to make noises…trying to scare it off, but it never really left. It just kept lingering, it kept trying to circle back around, so at that time is when the officer shot.