Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said he left a bear carcass in Central Park
Aug 5, 2024, 9:20 AM | Updated: Dec 17, 2024, 5:55 pm
FILE - Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during the Libertarian National Convention at the Washington Hilton in Washington, May 24, 2024. Georgia Democrats are challenging efforts to place Kennedy and three other candidates on the state's presidential ballots, part of a nationwide effort to block candidates who could siphon votes from incumbent President Joe Biden. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
Credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS
(AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
NEW YORK — Independent Presidential Candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said that he once left a dead bear in New York City’s Central Park. He shared the story with actress Roseanne Barr in a video posted to Instagram.
In the video, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said he picked up the bear while he was on his way to go falconing in Goshen, New York.
“A woman in a van in front of me hit a bear and killed it,” said Kennedy in the video. “So I pulled over and picked up the bear and put it in the back of my van.”
According to the video, Kennedy intended to skin the bear and eat it. However, the animal remained in his car all day while he was falconing.
“We had a really good day and we went late,” said Kennedy. “So we stayed late.”
Due to the delay, Kennedy said that he didn’t have time to stop at his Westchester home. He had to go straight to New York City for dinner. The bear remained in his car as he had dinner at Peter Luger Steakhouse.
At the end of the dinner, Kennedy said he realized that he still couldn’t go home. He had to go to the airport.
“I didn’t want to leave the bear in my car because that would have been bad,” said Kennedy. He began to consider how he could get rid of the bear.
Although he said he had not been consuming alcohol, Kennedy said some of his friends had been.
Bicycle accidents had been getting heavy media coverage at the time, so Kennedy and his friends decided to put the bear in Central Park. They would also dump an old bicycle that was also in Kennedy’s car.
“We’ll make it look like he got hit by a bike,” said Kennedy.
According to Kennedy, the group thought it would be entertaining to the person who found it. The next morning, it was receiving heavy media coverage.
Park users discover the bear
Associated Press reported that two women discovered the bear while walking their dogs. They contacted New York City authorities.
Kennedy said that there was a heavy police presence in the park after the discovery. He worried, as his fingerprints had been on the bike.
The bear was sent to Albany, where a necropsy report revealed that it had been hit by a car. Its arrival in Central Park remained a mystery and the story died down.
Kennedy said that fact-checkers from The New Yorker recently reached out to verify the tale.
