RIO RANCHO, N.M. (AP) — A captured bear in Rio Rancho has ripped off a chunk of a 12-year-old boy's index finger.
KOAT-TV reports (http://bit.ly/J7ERyX) that the bear attacked the boy after he stuck his hand in a cage housing the bear.
New Mexico Department of Game and Fish officers put the bear in the cage Friday following reports of the bear in a tree in a Rio Rancho neighborhood. After the bear was captured, officers allowed people to crowd around the cage.
KOAT-TV cameras caught several youngsters up against the cage having their pictures taken. Some of the kids even had their faces against the bars.
It was unclear what the boy's status was after the attack.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.