Yellowstone Bison Taunter Arrested at Glacier National Park
OutdoorHub Reporters 08.07.18
Remember that viral video we shared of the bison taunter in Yellowstone National Park? Well after that video surfaced, the man was tracked down, arrested and linked to a series of vacation blunders that nearly puts Clark Griswold to shame.
A news release states that on August 2, Glacier National Park rangers contacted Raymond Reinke, age 55, and arrested him at approximately 10:45 p.m. The release says Yellowstone was just one stop Reinke had made that week during a trip to multiple national parks. He was first arrested at Grand Teton National Park after a drunk and disorderly incident led to a night in Teton County Jail. Reinke was released on bond the following day.
Upon his release, Reinke made the trip to Yellowstone National Park, where he had another run-in with park rangers on July 31. This time, Reinke was intoxicated and argumentative with authorities. He was cited as a passenger for failure to wear a seat belt.
It’s believed after that traffic stop is when Reinke made this dumb decision to face off with a bison:
Yellowstone rangers received several wildlife harassment reports from concerned visitors who were at the park that day, and initiated a search for Reinke. Officials tracked him down later that evening issuing a citation that required a court appearance. The footage above reportedly surfaced after the 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 on the night of August 2, a warrant was issued for Reinke’s arrest.
Reinke had told rangers that his plans were to travel to Glacier National Park. Last night, August 2, Glacier National Park rangers began looking for his vehicle. Simultaneous with that search, rangers 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.
Glacier rangers transported Reinke to Helena, where they met Yellowstone rangers. They then transported Reinke to Mammoth Hot Springs and booked him into the Yellowstone Jail.
Here’s the full news release from NPS:
“MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, WY – Last night, August 2, at approximately 10:45 p.m., Glacier National Park rangers apprehended Raymond Reinke, age 55, from Pendleton, Oregon. Reinke was wanted following an incident earlier this week at Yellowstone National Park when he was captured on video harassing a bison.
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.”
Reinke had been traveling to multiple national parks over the last week. On July 28, he was first arrested by law enforcement rangers at Grand Teton National Park for a drunk and disorderly conduct incident. He spent the night in the Teton County Jail, and was then released on bond.
Following his release, he traveled to Yellowstone National Park. Rangers at Yellowstone stopped his vehicle for a traffic violation on July 31. Reinke appeared to be intoxicated and argumentative. 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, issuing a citation requiring a court appearance. The video of the event surfaced 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 on the night of August 2, a warrant was issued for Reinke’s arrest.
Reinke had told rangers that his plans were to travel to Glacier National Park. Last night, August 2, Glacier National Park rangers began looking for his vehicle. Simultaneous with that search, rangers 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.
Glacier rangers transported Reinke to Helena late last night, where they met Yellowstone rangers. Yellowstone rangers transported Reinke to Mammoth Hot Springs and booked him into the Yellowstone Jail. He is scheduled for a court appearance today.”
