RIVERSIDE, Calif. (Map, News) - Officials want to know how a pair of severed bear paws wound up in a Riverside neighborhood.

Police were called to a home north of the Riverside Municipal Airport on Saturday after residents there found the paws stuffed in a bag.

Police notified the state Department of Fish and Game, which will investigate the incident.

Bear poaching is a problem in California, where bear paws and gallbladders can fetch good money because they are prized in traditional Chinese medicine.

Bear hunting is legal with a license and a bear tag, but any sale of the meat or parts for profit is considered a felony punishable by up to a year in prison and a $10,000 fine.

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Information from: The Press-Enterprise, http://www.pe.com