A security guard escaped with just a few scratches after a bear attacked him at a luxury hotel.
The animal had wandered into the kitchen of the five-star St Regis Aspen Resort in Aspen, Colorado, when the employee went to investigate.
As he slowly walked towards the back of the kitchen, the bear launched itself at him and savaged the guard with its paws.
The man was sent flying across the floor, before the bear then ran in the opposite direction.
The guard was taken to hospital, but only suffered scratches to his back and was soon discharged, Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) said.
A spokesman for CPW said: “Officers did note, while searching for this bear, eight other bears were seen moving around downtown Aspen.”
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Wildlife officers said the bear had entered the hotel through multiple doors near the courtyard.
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CCTV footage showed the bear roaming the kitchen on Monday night, moments before the guard entered the room.
After the attack the guard managed to call 911.
A large-scale hunt involved wildlife officers as well as Aspen Police Department and Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office.
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But it was not until the early hours of Wednesday morning that the animal was tracked down and tranquillised and later euthanised.
It was identified as the same animal that attacked the security guard due to a distinctive white patch on its chest, according to CPW.
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Matt Yamashita, area wildlife manager at CPW, said: “During our initial investigation we gathered witness statements along with photos and videos from hotel security cameras.
“All played an important part in our investigation. Using the footage provided by the hotel, we were able to confirm the aggressive behaviour of the bear and identify unique physical characteristics of the bear that assisted in the proper identification of the offending bear.”
Wildlife officers said the hotel kitchen was clean and did not have food lying around that could have attracted the animal.
Experts estimate Colorado has between 17,000 and 20,000 bears and the population is “stable and growing”.
