Monday, January 12, 2026

After Bear ‘Evicted’ from Altadena Home, Nearby Resident Has Same Problem

CITY NEWS SERVICE

A bear that had lived under another Altadena home for six weeks was finally sacred off from that property on Jan. 6.

Just days after the paintball-induced eviction of a 500-plus-pound bear who took up residence beneath an Altadena home, residents of a house about a half-mile away are reporting that a bear has moved into the space under their home.

It’s unclear if the new case involves the same bear, who spent weeks under the home of Ken Johnson after squeezing through a seemingly too-small crawlspace entry.

The outfit that sent that bear packing the first time says it’s already been contacted about repeating the successful ouster. The second resident sent images of the bear beneath the home to KTLA5 anonymously, according to the station.

Last week, the animal under Johnson’s house was chased off by the Tahoe-based animal-advocacy group BEAR League after the bruin had moved into the crawlspace some time last year.

Around Thanksgiving, a camera captured the unthinkable — the massive black bear backing into the narrow crawlspace entryway. Efforts to remove the bear all fell flat, leaving Johnson frustrated and even threatening to sue the state for failing to get the animal out of the crawlspace.

According to the BEAR League, one of the volunteers “crawled beneath the home — fully aware the bear was still there — to get behind him and encourage him to exit through the crawlspace opening.”

Once the bear exited, the animal was pelted with paintballs and ran off. The crawlspace was boarded up, and “electric unwelcome mats” were placed atop the former opening to discourage the bear from returning.

Video surveillance captured by Johnson on Wednesday night showed the bear trying to return to the adoptive subterranean home, but the electrified mat quickly scared the animal off.

“I’m relieved — no more banging under the house and smelling him and wondering what’s going on under there,” Johnson told KTLA5 on Thursday.

He told the station he can now access the crawlspace and assess what damage had been caused — including a ruptured gas line.

A person who answered the phone at BEAR League on Monday said the group had been contacted by the second homeowner, but she declined to release details about when the call came and if BEAR League is going to respond again.

It was not immediately clear if the state Department of Fish and Wildlife has been contacted in this latest case of bear intrusion.