Business owner in Canton tells police he shot, killed bear in ‘self-defense’

A business owner in Canton shot and killed a bear on Monday in an act he described to authorities as self-defense.

The shooting was reported in the morning hours at a business on Cheryl Drive, where the owner told authorities a bear had rummaged through a trash bin before returning to the area, according to the Canton Police Department.

The owner said he was cleaning up the trash spill when the bear returned to the area and advanced on him, police said. The man said the shooting was done in self-defense, according to police.

A spokesperson for the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection said EnCon police are investigating. The bear involved was an untagged adult male, according to DEEP.