Authorities in Italy say a female bear that attacked humans in the Alps on at least two separate occasions has been captured.
Jj4, a 17-year-old Alpine brown bear, was captured in Adamello Brenta Natural Park Monday night, nearly two weeks after she mauled 26-year-old runner Andrea Papi to death, according to the Associated Press and the BBC.
Papi was running on a path near his village of Caldes on April 5 when the attack occurred, The Guardian reported.
Officials in Trento said a tube trap was used to capture the bear, which was then transported to a wildlife park in Castellar, per the outlet.
The bear’s three 2-year-old cubs were with their mother when she was trapped, according to the AP. The younger bears were freed and physically unharmed.
Jj4 previously attacked a father and son who were hiking in the same area in 2020, per the reports.
Still, attacks like these are considered rare in the region.
A court later blocked authorities’ attempts to kill the animal, which is related to two other bears that were killed due to their aggression, per the AP.
The Alpine brown bears are a protected in Italy, according to the BBC, which notes that the species was reintroduced to the area about 20 years ago.
Authorities have issued an order for Jj4 to be euthanized but are waiting for a court to issue an official ruling on the matter, the BBC reports.
Officials said Jj4 recently appeared to become increasingly aggressive, according to the BBC.
At a press conference, provincial Gov. Maurizio Fugatti said authorities would have preferred to immediately kill the bear on-site, per the report.
“It is the news we would have liked to have given in 2020 following the attack against a father and son,” Fugatti said, according to The Guardian.
“There is bitterness about what has happened this time,” he added.
However, Papi’s parents have expressed their opposition to killing Jj4, according to the reports. Animal activists have also argued in favor of sparing the bear’s life.
“It’s too easy to say he shouldn’t have been running there,” Papi’s mother told Rai 2, according to The Guardian. “The population didn’t know there were four problematic bears.”
A decision on the case could be issued on May 11, per The Guardian.