Day

A town resident used a pile of corn to lure a bear into his yard last month, then shot it, authorities say.

On Sept. 22, three officers from the state Department of Environmental Conservation investigated an illegal bear shooting in Day, an Adirondack town of about 900 in Saratoga County. A man, not named by the DEC, claimed he had shot the bear in his yard because it was a nuisance, the DEC said in a statement.

The officers found a shooting lane less than 300 yards from the man's deck and hanging steel targets. Underneath the targets they found a pile of corn covered in blood and black hair.

After they presented him with the evidence, the man admitted shooting the bear over the bait pile and was charged with illegally feeding, hunting and taking a bear. The bear's skull, meat and gall bladder were seized as evidence.

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