Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says he left a dead bear in Central Park as a prank (2024)

By JONATHAN J. COOPER

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WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. once retrieved a bear that was killed by a motorist and left it in New York’s Central Park with a bicycle on top, sparking a mystery that consumed the city a decade ago.

Kennedy described the 2014 incident in a video that was posted to social media Sunday, adding it would be included in a New Yorker article that he expected to be damaging.

The article was published Monday and included a photo of Kennedy with his fingers in the bear’s bloodied mouth, a mock grimace on his face. His left pant leg appears to have a bloodstain on it.

It’s the latest bizarre incident in Kennedy’s quixotic campaign that has divided his famous family and left Republicans and Democrats alike concerned about his potential impact on the presidential contest. Kennedy has acknowledged a parasite that lodged in his brain and died. He denied eating a dog after a friend shared a photo with Vanity Fair magazine showing Kennedy dramatically preparing to take a bite of a charred animal; Kennedy said it was a goat.

In the video, Kennedy recounts the story to actress Roseanne Barr. He says he was heading to a falconry excursion with friends when a woman driving ahead of him hit and killed the young bear with her vehicle. He says he put it in his own vehicle, intending to skin it and eat the meat, but the day got away from him.

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Eventually, he says, he was in Manhattan and needed to get the bear carcass out of his vehicle. His friends, fueled by alcohol, concocted the Central Park plan as a prank, he said, adding he was not drunk himself. At the time, bicycle accidents were getting significant media attention, so Kennedy and his friends thought it would be funny to make it look like the bear was hit by a bicycle.

Two women walking their dogs found the dead bear and alerted authorities, touching off a mystery that captivated the city for a few days. Bears are not among the park’s known wildlife population.

AP correspondent Julie Walker reports Robert F. Kennedy Jr. confesses to leaving a dead bear in Central Park years ago.

The bike was dusted for prints and the animal sent to Albany for a necropsy, which determined the bear was likely hit by a vehicle and was not a victim of animal cruelty. But how the bear ended up in Central Park remained a mystery.

“I was worried because my prints were all over that bike,” Kennedy tells Barr in the video.

Kennedy declined to speak to reporters Monday in Albany, New York, where he was attending a civil trial related to his efforts to get on the ballot in that state. A group trying to exclude him from New York’s ballot filed a lawsuit claiming Kennedy lied on nomination papers about where he lives.

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New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation, which enforces laws regarding wildlife, said in a statement Monday that it closed its investigation after a forensic analysis concluded that the cub died from injuries consistent with a high-speed collision.

Possessing a bear without a tag or permit, or illegally disposing of a dead bear, are offenses punishable by fines of up to $250 in New York, but the department said charges cannot be brought for violations that occurred more than a year ago.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says he left a dead bear in Central Park as a prank (2024)

FAQs

Who left the dead bear in Central Park? ›

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says he left a dead bear in Central Park as a prank.

Who put the bear in Central Park? ›

Kennedy mentioned that in addition to the dead bear cub, he had "an old bike in my car that somebody asked me to get rid of." "I said let's go put the bear in Central Park and we'll make it look like it got hit by a bike," Kennedy recalled. What he did not expect was the media attention the stunt would attract.

Are there bears in Central Park? ›

Bears are not among the park's known wildlife population. The bike was dusted for prints and the animal sent to Albany for a necropsy, which determined the bear was likely hit by a vehicle and was not a victim of animal cruelty. But how the bear ended up in Central Park remained a mystery.

What year was Robert F. Kennedy Jr. born? ›

Kennedy was born at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C., on January 17, 1954. He is the third of eleven children of senator and U.S. attorney general Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Skakel. He is a nephew of President John F. Kennedy and Senator Ted Kennedy.

Did RFK dump a dead bear in Central Park? ›

RFK Jr admits dumping bear carcass in New York's Central Park. In a video posted on X, RFK Jr confessed to dumping a dead bear cub in New York's Central Park in 2014. Robert F Kennedy Jr has recounted how he dumped a dead bear cub in New York's Central Park in 2014.

Who killed the bears? ›

Police arrested and charged 13 people from Cinderford who were charged with killing the bears and assaulting the Frenchmen. “Who killed the bears?” is still used as a taunt against the residents of Ruardean who were wrongly blamed for the attack at the time.

Why did they call him The Bear? ›

Carmy, Michael, and Natalie's (their sister) last name is Berzatto, pronounced “bear-zaa-tow.” In the series, both Michael and Carmy are affectionately called “bear” by their friends. To homage to his late brother, Carmy opted to close the old family restaurant, The Beef, and open a new one called The Bear.

What happened to Central Park polar bear? ›

But when they examined him on Tuesday afternoon, they found a large inoperable tumor in his thyroid region and decided to euthanize him. Gus was 27. (The Association of Zoos and Aquariums puts the median life expectancy for a male polar bear living in a zoo at 20.7 years.)

Who is the black girl in The Bear? ›

Ayo Edebiri is an American comedian, writer, producer and actress. She portrayed Sydney Adamu in the first and second season of the comedy drama series The Bear.

Did RFK leave a bear in Central Park? ›

He said he had plans to skin it and eat it, but time got away from him and he wound up leaving it near a bike path in the park as a joke. He was 60 at the time. The DEC statement said its probe had indeed "concluded the bear died from blunt-force trauma consistent with a high-speed collision."

Are there monkeys in Central Park? ›

There's a startling variety of animals in the Tropic Zone, from the forest floor to the canopy, including a wide range of tropical birds and engaging troops of black-and-white ruffed lemurs, white-faced saki monkeys, cotton-topped tamarins, and much more.

Are there snakes in Central Park? ›

Even more natural areas in NYC like Central Park and Van Courtland Park often don't see many snakes when compared with upstate. Still, there are a few species of snakes still living in NYC. They can be found in wooded areas, gardens and zoos, unused lots, along highways, and sometimes in yards.

Why is RFK's voice so scratchy? ›

The cause is a neurological condition called spasmodic dysphonia. Spasmodic dysphonia, also known as laryngeal dysphonia, often results in a shaky, tight or strained-sounding voice.

What was Robert Kennedy buried with? ›

Who is Robert F. Kennedy's dad? ›

Robert Francis Kennedy was born on November 20, 1925, in Brookline, Massachusetts, the seventh child in the closely knit and competitive family of Rose and Joseph P. Kennedy. "I was the seventh of nine children," he later recalled, "and when you come from that far down you have to struggle to survive."

Is Brutus the bear still alive? ›

Brutus died on February 2, 2021, at the age of 19.

What happened to Ben the Bear? ›

After a long and hard-fought battle by PETA, the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF), and concerned citizens, “Ben the Bear” has been rescued from abhorrent conditions at a North Carolina roadside zoo and will now live out the rest of his life at the Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), a beautiful accredited ...

What happened to Hank the bear? ›

On August 7, 2023, Hank and her three cubs were captured by Californian wildlife officers after being on the run for more than a year. Hank was transported to the Wild Animal Sanctuary, near Springfield, Colorado. The CDFW has labelled Hank a "conflict bear" and stated that such bears are usually euthanized.

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