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Hiker in Japan found dead after bear attack in forest

The man was attacked while walking a trail on Mount Rausu on the northern island of Hokkaido

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A brown bear in Hokkaido. The number of brown bears in Hokkaido fell year-on-year in 2023 for the first time since 1991. Photo: Shutterstock
Agence France-Presse
A hiker attacked by a wild brown bear was found dead in northern Japan on Friday, officials said, a day after the bloody encounter that reportedly saw him dragged into a forest.

The hiker in his 20s tried to fight off the large animal but was pulled into the nearby woods with his legs bleeding profusely, local media outlets including the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper said.

The man was attacked while walking a trail on Mount Rausu on the northern island of Hokkaido on Thursday morning, a local police spokesman said.

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On Friday afternoon, he was found and taken to a hospital where he was officially pronounced dead, according to a Hokkaido government official.

Hunters also caught and killed a bear near the trail, an official working for Shari town – where the mountain is – said.

01:46

Chinese man calmly escapes as bear searches for food in hotel

Chinese man calmly escapes as bear searches for food in hotel

DNA analysis will be conducted to determine whether the bear was responsible for the victim’s death.

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