Black bear killed in Moxee spotted earlier at Terrace Heights Landfill

Moxee police shot and killed a black bear Saturday night after discussions with Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Community members reported seeing a bear near the 6000 block of Mieras Road in Moxee around 7:40 p.m. Saturday, according to a news release from the Moxee Police Department.

WDFW Communications Officer Becky Elder said the animal was a male black bear that was 125 to 150 pounds with brown coloring. She said that WDFW considered tranquilizing and relocating the bear but decided not to based on the situation.

“The animal moved into an area that was not conducive to dart-and-relocate,” Elder said. “Obviously, our first choice is to relocate. … It wasn’t something that was going to be appropriate or safe.”

Elder said the bear was close to a business, a busy freeway and a residential area. It was also getting dark and there was nowhere to easily tree the bear, which authorities prefer to do when darting bears and putting them to sleep, she said.

A Moxee police officer observed the bear for some time, the release said, before an officer fired one shot to kill it. The decision was made in consultation with WDFW because of concerns the bear was in a densely populated area, and might be headed to a nearby neighborhood or business, the police news release said.

Elder said the bear had been spotted around 6:15 a.m. Saturday morning near the Terrace Heights Landfill. She added that bears do not usually wander into the area, but it was possible it approached Moxee in search of food.

“Officers are puzzled,” Elder said. “It’s definitely not normal bear habitat.”

She said it was possible the bear had become habituated to a food source like human garbage or trash, possibly from the landfill or local dumpsters.