South Lake Tahoe man pleads "no contest" to killing bear last summer

Submitted by paula on Sun, 03/13/2016 - 1:46pm

The 78-year old man responsible for killing a bear found off Pioneer Trail in South Lake Tahoe on July 10, 2015 has pleaded no contest to the misdemeanor charge of unlawfully taking of a bear.

Appearing in El Dorado County court Friday, Gilbert Wetenkamp admitted to killing the bear that he said in July caused damage to his home over several incidents, and that he feared for his life.

Wetenkamp will be sentenced in El Dorado County Court on Friday, March 18, 2016.

Ann Bryant of the BEAR League said the man involved had called her group several times asking for them to kill the bear. Through their Facebook page, the group is calling for people to show up at sentencing.

He faces both a fine and jail time.