Hiker Takes Tragically Chilling Cellphone Photos of 300-Pound Black Bear Stalking Him

A New Jersey hiker killed by a bear in September took a series of photos of the animal with his cellphone before the bear mauled him to death.

Image source: West Milford police

Police in West Milford have released five photos taken by 22-year-old Darsh Patel, a Rutgers University student, before he was killed by the 300-pound black bear while hiking with four friends in the Apshawa Preserve, 45 miles northwest of New York.

Image source: West Milford police

The photos show the bear behind a fallen tree in the woods. Investigators said the phone was found with puncture marks from the bear.

Image source: West Milford police

The photos were released after NJ.com filed an open records request regarding the Sept. 21 incident.

Image source: West Milford police

West Milford police and the state Environmental Protection Department said last month that the bear did not seem interested in food and exhibited "stalking type behavior."

Image source: West Milford police

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Chief Timothy Storbeck said in previous interviews that Patel — and four of his friends had begun walking into the preserve that afternoon when they were met by a man and a woman coming the other way. The pair warned the larger group about a bear following them. The couple walked away, leaving the group of five to talk about what they were going to do. They eventually walked farther into the woods.

The five stopped when the bear was 300 feet away, Storbeck had said.

The five pictures taken from Patel’s phone show the bear from approximately 100 feet, looking toward the hikers but still behind a fallen log, authorities said.

A sixth photo was taken by a friend of Patel’s apparently standing next to him, NJ.com said, which almost matches one of Patel's five photos. Those were the only six pictures taken by the group, NJ.com reported, citing Lt. Keith Ricciardi.

But the West Milford Township clerk told TheBlaze on Wednesday that police only released the five photos from Patel's cellphone and that any others are duplicates. Ricciardi did not immediately return a message from TheBlaze on Wednesday asking for clarification.

This screenshot from a WXPI-TV report could be a duplicate from Patel's set of five photos, but it appears slightly different from them.

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The hikers turned around when the bear kept approaching, authorities said. But the bear caught up with them, eventually closing to within 15 feet, investigators said. When the bear reached that proximity, the group split up running in different directions, they later told police investigators.

Patel at one point lost his shoe, and was last seen climbing a rock formation as he hollered for his friends to continue, with the bear right behind him. The group of four fled the woods and called 911, according to police records.

Emergency responders came upon Patel’s body about four hours later. The bear was in the area, authorities said. Eventually, a police officer shot and killed the bear.

An autopsy showed that Patel was mauled by the bear. Human remains were found in the bear’s stomach and esophagus, and human blood and tissue were found underneath its claws, authorities said.

Patel’s pants, socks, glasses and sneakers were later found near his body, NorthJersey.com reported. The outlet added that David Suh, a friend of Patel, took the sixth photo which police released along with Patel's on Tuesday.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.