California home abandoned by despairing victim of repeat burglaries was taken over by bears, police say

Bears took over an abandoned home in Northern California after it was burglarized so many times that the 64-year-old owner stopped living there

A 64-year-old woman fled her remote Lovelock home after repeated break-ins, only for bears to later invade the abandoned property (Getty Images)

A 64‑year‑old Northern California woman watched helplessly as her rural Magalia home was burglarized so many times that she ultimately left, only to have the property invaded by bears.

The Butte County district attorney’s office revealed Thursday that 11 suspects, 10 from Magalia and one from Paradise, have been charged with first‑degree residential burglary for allegedly breaking into the woman’s remote Lovelock home beginning on April 17.

Six additional suspects face pending burglary charges.

The DA’s office said the burglaries became so frequent that the woman abandoned her house out of fear.

The structural damage from the break‑ins left the home vulnerable to wildlife, authorities said, and bears eventually entered the home, further escalating the woman’s losses.

The 11 people charged in this case are:

• Sean Anthony Crua, 43, of Magalia
• Nicholas Brown, 37, of Magalia
• Mary Ricca, 59, of Magalia
• Sefo Sipa, 37, of Paradise
• Gavin Dominguez‑Feathers, 25, of Magalia
• Joey Kupiheanapeahi, 42, of Magalia
• Breanna Maier, 32, of Magalia
• Michael Barnett, 29, of Magalia
• Matthew Bacon, 44, of Magalia
• Lindsey McLaughlin, 37, of Magalia
• Kayla Goebel, 34, of Magalia

Eleven people have been arrested in connection with the burglaries, while six other suspects have charges pending against them. (Butte County DA)

Some of the defendants were released despite the DA's objections, but Crua, Maier, Dominguez‑Feathers, and Kupiheanapeahi remain in custody with bail set at $50,000.

Barnett and McLaughlin were arraigned Thursday afternoon. The remaining defendants are due back in court on July 9 and 10.

Anyone with information on this case should contact the Butte County Sheriff’s Office at (530) 538-7321.