Man Who Harassed Yellowstone Bison Arrested for Incidents in Three Different National Parks

Authorities have found and arrested the man from the viral Yellowstone video.

We recently shared a viral video out of Yellowstone National Park where a man was seen taunting a large bull bison in the middle of the road.

You can hear the bison announcing its anger at the man through a series of growls. Miraculously, the bison doesn't trample or gore the man over the course of the video. But it went viral almost immediately after hitting the internet. Now authorities have found, identified and arrested him.

The National Park Service announced the man is 55-year-old Raymond Reinke from Pendleton, Oregon, and it turns out the bison incident was just one of three separate incidents in three different National Parks over the course of just a few days. Police first arrested him July 28 in Grand Teton National Park for drunk and disorderly conduct.

After spending a night in Teton County jail, he was released on bond and then apparently continued his trip into Yellowstone, which is located just north of the Tetons. Three days later Yellowstone rangers stopped his vehicle for a traffic violation.

Reinke was a passenger in the vehicle and the NPS says he was argumentative and appeared intoxicated during the stop. He earned himself a citation for not wearing his seatbelt.

Yellowstone rangers think the bison incident happened sometime after the traffic stop. The rangers did get several complaints in the wake of the bison incident, so they issued another citation. The second citation required a court appearance.

At the time of the second citation, the video of Reinke's unbelievable run-in with the bison hadn't hit the internet yet. When it did, it was enough to convince the assistant U.S. attorney to request his bond be revoked. This led to an arrest warrant being issued for Reinke Aug. 2.

But by this time, Reinke was no longer in Yellowstone, and the tourist made his way even further north to Montana's Glacier National Park. It wasn't hard for rangers to find him. While there he became involved in yet a third incident at the Many Glacier Hotel.

Rangers say Reinke was involved in an argument in the hotel dining room and was creating a disturbance to other park guests. He was arrested on the scene and taken back to Yellowstone's Mammoth Hot Springs and booked into the jail there awaiting a court appearance.

"We appreciate the collaboration of our fellow rangers in Glacier and Grand Teton National Parks on this arrest," Yellowstone superintendent Dan Wenk said in a press release. "Harassing wildlife is illegal in any national park."

We'll keep an eye on this strange story right here at Wide Open Spaces.

NEXT: WHAT NOT TO DO ON YOUR YELLOWSTONE VACATION THIS SUMMER

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