> At a Glance
> – Robert F. Kennedy Jr. claims he placed a road-killed bear cub in Central Park in 2014
> – He says the animal was hit by a van ahead of him while he was falconing in Goshen, NY
> – Kennedy planned to skin and eat the bear but ditched it when running late for dinner
> – Why it matters: The bizarre admission, made in an August 2024 video, reopens questions about the decade-old mystery that drew major law-enforcement attention
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has told a new story about how a dead baby black bear ended up in Central Park in October 2014: he put it there. In an August 2024 video with Roseanne Barr, Kennedy says he scooped up the road-killed cub in Orange County, intended to harvest the meat, then staged a fake bike-accident scene when his schedule got tight.
The Falconing Trip That Took a Turn
Kennedy says the incident started during a falconing outing near Goshen, NY, when a van ahead of him struck and killed a small bear. Claiming the carcass was “in very good condition,” he loaded it into his own vehicle, noting that New York allows motorists to claim road-killed bears with the proper tag.
His plan:
- Skin the bear
- Store the meat at home in Westchester
- Return from the outing in time for a Peter Luger dinner in Brooklyn
Timeline Trouble
The falconing ran long. Facing a tight window before his flight, Kennedy says he skipped the Westchester detour and drove straight to Brooklyn with the bear still in the van. When dinner also ran late, he hatched a new plan.
Kennedy recounts:
> “I had an old bike in my car that somebody had asked me to get rid of. I said, ‘Let’s go put the bear in Central Park, and we’ll make it look like he got hit by a bike.'”
He adds that recent fatal cycling accidents in the city made the idea seem plausible-and darkly amusing-to his companions.
Aftermath and Lingering Questions
The bear was discovered Monday, October 6, 2014. News reports at the time noted the bike beside the carcass was being checked for fingerprints, a detail Kennedy says made him anxious.
| Event | Date | Time Estimate |
|---|---|---|
| Bear struck | Sunday, Oct 5, 2014 | Afternoon |
| Carcass placed in park | Sunday night | Late evening |
| Body found | Monday, Oct 6, 2014 | Early morning |
Kennedy insists he broke no laws, reiterating twice in the video that he was sober and that the bear was legally claimed. Yet the timeline raises a practical question: with a flight looming, he could have left the carcass in any wooded area between Goshen and Manhattan instead of hauling it into the city.
Key Takeaways
- Kennedy says he personally staged the 2014 Central Park bear scene
- The cub was road-killed in Orange County, NY, during a falconing trip
- He abandoned plans to harvest the meat when dinner and travel schedules collided
- The stunt drew outsized media and police attention, surprising Kennedy
The admission revives a decade-old mystery that many had forgotten-while adding a surreal footnote to the public record of the environmental lawyer and current presidential candidate.
