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Oregon man arrested after video shows him taunting a bison at Yellowstone National Park

Posted at 1:55 PM, Aug 04, 2018
and last updated 2018-08-21 11:44:18-04

(GREAT FALLS) Raymond Reinke has been arrested in connection with a now-viral video that shows him taunting a bison in Yellowstone National Park.

  • Reinke was arrested in Grand Teton National Park for a drunk and disorderly conduct incident; released on bond. 
  • Reinke then went to Yellowstone; rangers stopped his vehicle, and he appeared intoxicated and argumentative. Cited as a passenger for failure to wear a seat belt.
  • Yellowstone rangers later received harassment reports and found Reinke that evening, and issued a citation requiring a court appearance. 
  • Yellowstone rangers connected Reinke’s extensive history, and saw the viral video; Assistant U.S. Attorney requested his bond be revoked. 
  • A warrant was issued for Reinke’s arrest.
  • Rangers went to a hotel in Glacier National Park for two guests arguing and creating a disturbance in dining room. Rangers identified one of the individuals involved as Reinke. 
  • Yellowstone National Park Superintendent: “Harassing wildlife is illegal in any national park.” 

The video was posted online by Lindsey Jones; it was taken taken in Hayden Valley in Yellowstone on Tuesday evening (July 31).The video shows a man in the road taunting a bison; at one point, the bison begins to charge at the person, who quickly dodges out of the way.

A press release from Yellowstone on Friday says that Reinke was arrested on Thursday at about 10:45 p.m. by Glacier National Park rangers.

Reinke, 55 years old, is from Pendleton, Oregon. Glacier rangers took Reinke to Helena, where they met Yellowstone rangers. Yellowstone rangers then took Reinke to Mammoth Hot Springs and booked him into the Yellowstone Jail. He was  scheduled to make his court appearance on Friday afternoon.

According to the press release, Reinke has been traveling to national parks over the last week. On July 28, he was arrested by rangers at Grand Teton National Park for a drunk and disorderly conduct incident. He spent the night in the Teton County Jail, and was released on bond. 

He then went to Yellowstone National Park, where rangers stopped his vehicle for a traffic violation on Tuesday, July 31. Reinke appeared to be intoxicated and argumentative, according to park staff. He was cited as a passenger for failure to wear a seat belt. It is believed that after that traffic stop, Reinke encountered the bison.

Yellowstone rangers received several wildlife harassment reports from concerned visitors and found Reinke later that evening, and issued a citation requiring a court appearance. The video of the event surfaced online after that citation had been issued. 

On Thursday, August 2, Yellowstone rangers connected Reinke’s extensive history, and seeing the egregious nature of the wildlife violation, the Assistant U.S. Attorney requested his bond be revoked. The request was granted and Thursday evening, a warrant was issued for Reinke’s arrest. 

Reinke had told rangers that his plans were to travel to Glacier National Park, so on Thursday night, Glacier National Park rangers began looking for his vehicle. Rangers also responded to the Many Glacier Hotel because two guests were arguing and creating a disturbance in the hotel dining room. Rangers identified one of the individuals involved as Reinke. 

Yellowstone National Park Superintendent Dan Wenk said, “We appreciate the collaboration of our fellow rangers in Glacier and Grand Teton national parks on this arrest. Harassing wildlife is illegal in any national park.”

We will update this article with a booking photo of Reinke once we receive it.

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