Knoxville-based ‘Cocaine Bear’ story turns into movie

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - A South Knoxville man called the police in 1985 when he saw a man in his backyard and didn’t know who it was. After investigators arrived on the scene, they realized the man was Andrew Thorton who had died after jumping out of an airplane without his parachute activating in time.

When looking into the mysterious death, Knoxville investigators found multiple bags of cocaine in the area weighing about 80 pounds each. After questioning Thorton’s accomplice who survived, it was determined that the Kentucky-based drug smugglers were flying from Columbia back to their home state while trying to use Knoxville connections to complete the journey.

According to former Knox County Sheriff and narcotics investigator Jimmy Jones, it was determined that the smugglers had 300 pounds of cocaine on the plane. After believing they were being followed by the DEA, Jones said they began throwing bags of cocaine into the woods.

Days into the investigation, Jones said he got a call from law enforcement in Georgia who said they found an 80-pound bag of cocaine and a bear that had died after tearing into it and eating it.

“When I describe it to people, it sounds like it’s something from a movie. It doesn’t seem real,” said Jones who is now retired.

In real life, the bear was found dead next to the bag of cocaine, but in the movie, the bear begins acting differently and attacking people as shown in the trailer.

The movie is based on a true story, but Jones said many of the elements in the movie aren’t true, although the idea garnered a laugh from the former investigator on the case.

In the Kentucky Fun Mall, the bear has since been taxidermized and put on display for people to see in Lexington.

The Cocaine Bear movie is set to release in February of 2023.