The Nation - News from Aug. 29, 1988

A man with wire cutters and a rifle liberated a dozen zoo animals, tangled with a Kodiak bear and terrorized a family before surrendering without a fight, authorities in Syracuse, N.Y., said. No one was injured in the escapade, although the suspect, Mario Fuller, 33, of suburban Jamesville, lost his shirt while wrestling with the bear inside the animal’s cage at the Burnet Park Zoo, police said. Later, the suspect broke into a house near the zoo and, telling the occupants he was an FBI agent, chased them outside and shot wildly as they fled in their car, police said. He was captured after he broke into a trucking firm. Fuller faces several charges, including burglary, criminal mischief, menacing and violations of endangered animal laws. Ten deer were recaptured but two bald eagles were still missing.