Marauding bear shot in West Vancouver

West Vancouver police shot and killed a large black bear that had entered a home in a residential area of West Vancouver Friday.

The male bear, weighing about 100 kilograms, had gotten into at least one home and a car in the area of 25th Street and Ottawa Street, where it opened a refrigerator door and also killed a pet rabbit, conservation officers said.

"This is one of the smarter bears I've seen," said conservation officer Jack Trudgian. "It learned how to push doors open … open fridges."

It appeared to have opened a centre console in the car to get at some candy there.

The bear had taken brownies out of the refrigerator and eaten them all, said Trudgian.

Trudgian said the bear had been tagged, indicating it had been caught in an area of human habitation and relocated in the wild once already.

"Nobody likes to destroy a bear, but sometimes it has to be done," Trudgian said.

Trudgian said a bear had been reported marauding in the neighbourhood for about two weeks, but there was no way of knowing for sure whether this was the same animal.

West Vancouver police were expected to release details Saturday about the shooting of the bear.