Yellowstone rangers track down and arrest Oregon man, 55, who was caught on camera harassing and taunting a bison after diners at another resort complained he was arguing with a guest in the dining room

• Rangers at Yellowstone National Park arrested 55-year-old Raymond Reinke, of Oregon, after he was seen in a video harassing a bison as it crossed the street
• Reinke was seen in the video beating his chest and screaming at the animal
• The bison was seen charging at Reinke several times, before walking away
• Yellowstone officials said in a statement that harassing wildlife is illegal 
• Reinke was arrested at Glacier National Park in Montana after rangers received a call about two guests arguing and creating a disturbance at a park hotel
• Officials said Reinke has been traveling to different national parks creating disturbances and was previously arrested at Grand Teton National Park

Raymond Reinke, 55, was arrested on Thursday night after he was seen in a Facebook video harassing a bison at Yellowstone National Park

The man seen in a now viral video taunting a bison crossing the street at Yellowstone National Park has been identified and arrested, park officials announced on Friday. 

Raymond Reinke, of Pendleton, Oregon, was taken into custody on Thursday night by Glacier National Park rangers following an incident at a hotel dining room.

Authorities began looking for Reinke, 55, after a Facebook video surfaced of him beating his chest and yelling at a bison causing the animal to get agitated and charge at him.

In the footage, shared by park goer Lindsey Jones, the large animal is seen slowly walking on the side of the road. Several cars had stopped so passengers could get a better look at the bison. 

Reinke is seen in the video walking behind the animal screaming at it. The bison turns around and slowly charges at Reinke, who runs away. Reinke then roars at the animal as it charges at him a second time. 

Reinke runs away again and the bison walks away. 

Reinke, 55, was seen in a Facebook video taunting a bison at Yellowstone National Park earlier this week 

Reinke was beating his chest and roaring at the animal, causing it to get agitated and charge at him

Park officials at Yellowstone said in a Facebook post on Thursday morning that the incident was being investigated. Reinke was apprehended at a national park in Montana later that night. 

According to Yellowstone officials, Reinke has spent the past week traveling to different national parks causing disturbances. 

He was arrested on July 28 by rangers at Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming for ‘drunk and disorderly conduct’. He spent the night in the Teton County jail and was released on bond. 

Following his release, he traveled to Yellowstone where he stopped by park rangers for a traffic violation on July 31. Officials said Reinke ‘appeared to be intoxicated and argumentative’ and was cited as a passenger for failure to wear a seat belt. 

He encountered the bison after the traffic incident. 

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The video was filmed by park goer Lindsey Jones and shared on Facebook. The footage quickly went viral, sparking an investigation 

Yellowstone officials said its illegal to harass wildlife. It’s not clear what charges Reinke may face 

Yellowstone said several park goers called in complaints about a man harassing wildlife. They found Reinke later that evening and issued a citation for him to appear in court, but were unaware of the video at the time. 

Officials said Reinke told them that he planned to travel to Glacier National Park next. After the disturbing video at Yellowstone surfaced, park officials contacted rangers at Glacier.  

Reinke was found at the Many Glacier Hotel after rangers received a call about two guests arguing and creating a disturbance in the hotel dining room. 

Reinke was arrested and taken to the Yellowstone jail. 

‘We need people to be stewards of Yellowstone, and one way to do that is to keep your distance from wildlife,’ Yellowstone said in a statement

‘The individual’s behavior in this video is reckless, dangerous, and illegal,’ Yellowstone officials said in a statement. 

‘We need people to be stewards of Yellowstone, and one way to do that is to keep your distance from wildlife. Park regulations require people to stay at least 25 yards from animals like bison and elk, and 100 yards from bears and wolves. These distances safeguard both visitors and the remarkable experience of sharing a landscape with thousands of freely-roaming animals. People who ignore these rules are risking their lives and threatening the park experience for everyone else.’

It’s not clear what charges Reinke may face.  

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