Cass County Sheriff’s Office

Tom Burch, Sheriff

PO Box 1119 | 303 Minnesota Ave | Walker MN 56484
218-547-1424 ● 800-450-2677 ● 218-547-3394 (fax)
cass.sheriff@co.cass.mn.us | www.co.cass.mn.us

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: Wednesday July 11, 2018
Contact: Tom Burch, Sheriff

PONTO LAKE TWP – PINE RIVER MN – DEATH INVESTIGATION

Cass County Sheriff Tom Burch reports that on July 8th 2018 at 10:49 PM, the Cass County
Sheriff’s Office received a report of a medical situation in Ponto Lake Township, near Lake
Ada in rural Pine River MN. Pine River Fire & Rescue, North Ambulance and Deputies
arrived on scene and learned that an adult male, age 70, was complaining of stomach
pain. He was treated on scene and transported to a Fargo Hospital by North Memorial Air
Care.

The investigation into the incident indicates that on July 6th 2018, the victim was
attempting to scare a bear away from his yard and the victim was charged by another
bear and thrown into the air, landing on the ground. There were no external visible
injuries to the victim from the incident.

On July 9th 2018, the Cass County Sheriff’s Office was notified by a Fargo, North Dakota
hospital that the victim has passed away at their facility. A preliminary autopsy was
conducted at the Cass County North Dakota Medical Examiner’s Office with the
University of North Dakota Forensic Pathology and Autopsy Services. The preliminary
report indicates that the bear did not cause the death of the victim. There were no
injuries or wounds discovered during the autopsy. The incident remains under
investigation by the Cass County Sheriff’s Office and Minnesota Department of Natural
Resources Conservation.

● Protecting & Serving the Citizens and Visitors of Cass County ●

Erick Hoglund Scott Thompson Chris Thompson Pauline Fahey Charlene Erickson Shanna Conner Chad Emery
Chief Deputy Lieutenant Lieutenant Admin/Civil/TRIAD Records/Oper ID Chief Dispatcher Emergency Mgmt
218-547-7330 218-547-7310 218-547-7361 218-547-7308 218-547-7303 218-547-1424 218-547-7437