THE DAILY WIRE · JEFFERSON COUNTY, COLORADO, USA · 2026-09-30
One Bear, Twenty Garages, and a Jefferson County Case File That Refuses to Close
In Jefferson County, Colorado, one bear has apparently decided that opening garage doors is less a wildlife encounter than a part-time job, racking up at least 20 break-ins before officials admitted they still don't have it in custody.
Per CBS News, Colorado Parks and Wildlife is actively searching for the bear responsible for the string of garage incursions, though as of the report, no capture, relocation, or resolution had been announced.
Twenty break-ins is not an anomaly, it is a work ethic. This desk has covered bears breaking into cars, cabins, and at least one fire station this year, but a bear running a full circuit of twenty garages suggests either remarkable persistence or a genuinely disappointing lack of secured trash bins countywide.
For an on-the-ground account, this reporter located SONNY, a Jefferson County elk who has watched the whole operation unfold from a safe, un-garaged ridge. His read on the bear's motives differs sharply from the official record.
Wildlife officials continue the search; the bear, presumably, continues the rounds. Twenty garages down, and the rest of the county still stands between it and dessert.
“Twenty garages, please. I've watched that bear work, he cases the neighborhood like he's got a route sheet. Humans leave garbage cans in there like it's a buffet line, then act shocked. For the record, bears can smell food from over a mile off, so lock the door, folks.” — Sonny, Jefferson County elk
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