A black bear is found dead in Seminole County and this may be a criminal investigation.

  • Authorities not sure what killed black bear
  • The female black bear may have been shot or ran over

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) officials said they got a call from the Seminole County Sheriff's Office about a female black bear that may have been shot.

Authorities are trying to determine if the 6- or 7-year-old bear was shot with a gun or arrow or just ran over by a vehicle.

The bear was found in Bookertown Park, Sanford, and at about 11 a.m., it was removed and taken to FWC biologists.

The bear was killed in a residential lot and dragged next to the park by a vehicle, authorities said, adding that bears are spotted often in this area.

"Where this neighborhood is situated it's adjacent to Wekiva State Park and Seminole forest, so black bears are pretty prevalent in this area of Seminole County," said Chad Weber, Public Information officer of the Northeast Region Division of Law Enforcement Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission