Thirty arrested in UK as raids target animal rights activists

Thirty people were arrested on May 1 on suspicion of involvement in animal rights extremism in a series of raids that targeted 29 UK addresses and three in Europe. The operation–the culmination of two years of investigations–involved around 700 officers in early morning raids, and is thought to be the largest ever conducted against animal rights activists. A source from the National Extremist Crime Unit said the people detained were suspected of crimes including firebombing, arson and vandalism. British police said 15 men and 15 women were held during the operation, which was conducted by five British police forces and related to investigations into past offenses. Twenty-seven people remain in custody, and three have been released. The raids took place in various parts of the UK. One address in Belgium was raided, as were two in the Netherlands. Police said they had taken action against an alleged extremist conspiracy targeting individuals and organizations including Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS). Staff at HLS, Europe's largest contract medical testing center, have faced a long-running campaign of attacks from animal rights activists. In recent years, police have enjoyed success in curbing the actions of activists, often using the Serious and Organized Crime and Police Act 2005, which expanded powers for targeting animal rights activists. Those arrested were held under the Act, but no charges have yet been brought. The crackdown followed comments by the British Prime Minister Tony Blair who has ordered police to do more to tackle animal rights activists. Speaking last year, he pledged more "robust" action against activists who targeted medical research facilities, and defended the use of animal testing for research. Speaking at a news conference following the raids, Adrian Leppard, the assistant chief constable of the Kent police, said the "substantial" operation could be the largest of its kind ever conducted. He said police were looking for extremists who had created a "climate of fear" in sustained "campaigns of harassment and intimidation against the animal research industry," but would not comment on whether future attacks had been stopped by the raids. Police had cooperated to investigate offenses including burglary, conspiracy to blackmail and the targeting of animal research organizations, he added. He said HLS were a "major victim, as you would expect" along with a "number of other individuals and commercial organizations." He would not elaborate on other victims. Leppard stressed that the operation had not targeted the "lawful animal welfare campaigners, who have every right to express their personal views on such issues." He said searches were ongoing and the operation would last for several days, apologizing for any disruption to the areas in which the raids were carried out. The Freshfields Animal Rescue Center was among the addresses targeted. It has been taking in unwanted animals from across the region for more than 25 years. Police confirmed that the center, near Formby, a coastal town 15 miles north of Liverpool, had been raided as part of the operation. The FBI has previously described the UK as the global center of animal rights extremism, and the National Extremist Crime Unit has been coordinating police investigations into criminal activity by some members of the Animal Liberation Front (ALF). In February this year, it was revealed that the operation included targeting animal rights street stalls in city centers. Police said some stalls had been used to raise funds for criminal actions, including campaigns such as that against HLS. Last month, the British Daily Telegraph reported that animal rights activists had been targeting farmers at a rate of one incident every nine days. The farmers attacked were predominantly involved in processed poultry farming. In one incident, for which the ALF claimed responsibility, around $500,000 of damage was caused to trucks in a firebomb attack on a farming business in Oxfordshire.