Conservation officers say a B.C. man charged with feeding bears to keep them around his outdoor marijuana plantation is doing it again.

Christina Lake resident Allen Piche's story went worldwide when he was charged with feeding dozens of black bears after police busted an outdoor marijuana growing operation on his rural property in August of last year.

Pictures of police officers posing with the tame bears were picked up by various media outlets.

Following the bust, Piche was charged for feeding dangerous wildlife and ordered to stop putting out buckets of dog food every day for the bruins.

Earlier this year, he told CBC News that most of the animals did return to his remote property this spring, but once they understood he was not going to feed them, they just left.

On Monday, the spokesman for the B.C. Crown prosecutors office, Neil MacKenzie, confirmed new charges have been laid against Piche for allegedly feeding the bears once again this past summer.

"Between June 1 and Oct. 6 this year, he intentionally fed dangerous wildlife, that being black bears, at or near Christina Lake," said McKenzie.

Jail term possible

Under the Wildlife Act, fines for feeding dangerous wildlife can be as high as $100,000 for a first offence, a jail term of up to one year, or both.

Piche was not available for comment about the new charges, but is scheduled to be sentenced on the original charges later next month.

Earlier this year, conservation officers said they shot 17 problem bears around Christina Lake this summer and some of them were undoubtedly "fed" bears.

Piche never denied feeding dog food to wild black bears, but said it started innocently enough over a decade ago when he began trying to nurse one bear back to health.

The feeding then snowballed to the point where Piche was putting out several kilograms of dog food a day for about two dozen bears that would amble out of the bush for their daily feedings.

An RCMP officer poses with two of the bears found at a marijuana grow-op in southeastern B.C. RCMP