Drama: Bear killed and then beheaded

An employee of the Drama Forest Service discovered the bear, shot dead with a firearm and subsequently beheaded, in a mountainous area of Livadero, Drama.

The Drama Forest Service, the environmental organization “Callisto,” and the Natural Environment and Climate Change Organization (OFYPEKA) were immediately informed, within the framework of the established operation of the region’s Bear Emergency Response Team.

A case file has already been opened, and authorities have begun a preliminary investigation to locate the perpetrators.

According to the necropsy performed, the animal had two gunshot wounds: one to the back and one to the thigh. The findings indicate that after killing the young male bear, the perpetrators proceeded to behead it.

According to an announcement by OFYPEKA and “Callisto,” killing or injuring a bear constitutes a criminal act, punishable by law. The bear in Greece is a strictly protected species under national and international legislation. The species and its habitat are protected by the Forest Code, the Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), the Bern Convention, and the Washington Convention (CITES). According to the Red Book of Threatened Animals of Greece (2009), the bear is classified as an Endangered Species.