Blacksburg man sentenced for stealing bear cub

SPARTANBURG — A Cherokee County man has been sentenced to eight months in jail for stealing a 7-month-old bear cub from an animal park.

John Chadwick Montgomery pleaded guilty this week to third-degree burglary and grand larceny for taking Newell from Hollywild Animal Park in Inman on Aug. 10.

The Herald-Journal of Spartanburg reported Wednesday the 31-year-old Blacksburg man told the judge his obsession with animals led him to collect as many animals as possible, and he meant no harm to the 60-pound cub.

Montgomery was on probation in North Carolina for stealing an African crane from a preserve.

Judge E.C. Burnett said Montgomery must learn he can't steal animals. Montgomery will get credit for his time in jail since the incident.

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