Officials in Christina Lake, B.C. believe that many of the tame black bears found at a marijuana grow-op last summer have now been killed after harassing residents and stealing food.

Grace McGregor, the director of the regional district for Christina Lake, says that conservation officers have killed at least 17 problem bears this year. She believes that many of those animals were those that had been fed dog food for years by local resident Allan Piche.

"It produced an awful lot of bears that were habituated to being fed," she told CTV News.

"[Bears] get habituated very quickly to being fed, and they begin to understand what a fridge looks like, and they begin to understand what garbage cans look like, and they know where they can get their food -- never mind people feeding them dishes of dog food."

More than two dozen docile bears were discovered during a police raid on a marijuana grow operation in August 2010. The animals acted like friendly pets, lounging on an RCMP cruiser and lazily watching as the officers did their work.

Piche has admitted to feeding the bears, but denies allegations that they were trained to guard the grow-op.

Authorities agreed to let Piche continue feeding them on a reduced schedule until they went into hibernation, then vowed to monitor the animals to see if they had been weaned off dog food.

That plan doesn't seem to have panned out.

McGregor says bears that seem to have lost their fear of humans have been pestering residents since the spring.

"A lot of people have found them standing at their door or on their doorstep or on the patio. One of our RV resorts had one up on the patio tearing open a fridge," she said.

"It was shaking the fifth-wheel trailer while it was doing that, and the poor woman inside was very, very frightened."

Piche pleaded guilty in March to feeding dangerous wildlife under the Wildlife Act, and is scheduled to be sentenced in December. The charge carries a maximum fine of $100,000 and up to a year in jail for first-time offenders.

He has also been charged with offences related to the grow-op, along with several others, and will appear in court on those charges later this year.