500 Pound Black Bear ‘Hank The Tank’ Terrorizing Lake Tahoe Neighborhood

Hank the Tank is not your ordinary California black bear. The hulking 500-pound creature has been on a crime spree since last summer. Hank has been making the lives of residents of the gated community Tahoe Keys a real hassle ever since leaving his legit life behind for one of theft, deception, greed.

Peter Tira of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife said that nobody has been able to stop hank. The bear has had the police called on him over 100 times since last July. Hank has been accused of breaking into at least 28 homes in the swanky neighborhood.

The average black bear in the western U.S. weighs between 100 and 300 pounds, according to the New York Times. Hank dwarfs them all. The series of home invasions has led to a diet of sweets, candy, and human food that continues to pack on the pounds.

Tira said the bear has lost all fear of people. The situation could be dangerous. Residents expected Hank the Tank to take off and hibernate when winter came. Hank has not cooperated.

Traps, paintballs, bean bag guns, sirens, and tasers have not been enough to keep Hank away from his hunger for theft. The bear continues to break into homes for gourmet meals, long since having eschewed the traditional diet of berries, grubs, and nuts.

Authorities are working on some sort of solution to get rid of Hank the Tank so the residents of Tahoe Keys can live in peace. Even euthanasia is on the table at this point. Hank chose a life of crime. It seems the old adage, “Live by the sword, die by the sword,” applies to bears, too.

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