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Animal rights activists jailed for blackmailing companies linked to Huntingdon Life Sciences

Gregg Avery Gregg Avery

SEVEN animal rights activists who blackmailed companies linked to an animal testing lab were today jailed for between four and 11 years.

The six-year international conspiracy between 2001 and 2007 targeted firms across the UK and Europe that either supplied or had secondary links with the Huntingdon Life Sciences.

The leaders of the blackmail conspiracy, Gregg Avery, 41, Natasha Avery, 39, and Heather Nicholson, 41, were founder members of Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (Shac) which was a front organisation which organised strategy and attacks on the firms and their staff, often under the badge of the Animal Liberation Front.

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They were assisted by computer expert Gavin Medd-Hall, 45, who researched the victims for Shac, and three ''foot soldiers'', Gerrah Selby, 20, Daniel Wadham, 21, and Daniel Amos, 22.

Sentencing the activists at Winchester Crown Court, Mr Justice Butterfield called the campaign ''urban terrorism'' and a ''relentless, sustained and merciless persecution'' which had made the victims lives ''a living hell''.

The campaign used threats such as claiming that managers of companies which supplied Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS) were paedophiles.

Homes of staff, and firms, had hoax bomb parcels sent to them or received threatening telephone calls. Threats of violence were also used to force companies to cut links with HLS.

Words like ''puppy killer'' and ''scum'' were painted on homes and cars of workers, cars were paint stripped, and used sanitary towels were posted to the victims with a note saying the sender had Aids.

The aim was to target suppliers or any company with a secondary link with HLS, and the campaign would only stop when the company put out a ''capitulation statement'' saying it would end links.

Comments(8)

Dr Alimantado says...
12:53pm Wed 21 Jan 09

serves the fat ginge right.

Andy Locks Heath says...
1:43pm Wed 21 Jan 09

This is nothing to do with loving animals and everything to do with having a random blind misdirected hatred that attaches itself to one cause. It seems to be a common problem that manifests itself in all kinds of wicked destructive behaviour. Him and his gang are just unpleasant bigots with inferiority complexes who should have got longer.

Georgem says...
1:46pm Wed 21 Jan 09

In what way is this blackmail? Sounds like extortion to me

Georgem says...
1:50pm Wed 21 Jan 09

How come all the mugshots look like the "Before..." section of some advert?

housewife says...
1:59pm Wed 21 Jan 09

Nasty, nasty people.
Bar them from ever getting help in a hospital of from a doctor
for the pain and damage they caused to researchers into Parkinsons, Alzheimers, Cancer, heart disease, you name it.

Miles Sway says...
2:23pm Wed 21 Jan 09

Morally I'm against animal testing but I'm a hypocrite, because if I get ill I won't really care if the cure has been found at the expense of a beagle or two, so long as it cures me, and I'll bet these loonies would be the same.
As long as testing is done in the most painless & humane way (is that a contradiction?) it is sadly necessary and many people owe their lives to the work of scientists involved.
These idiots add nothing to any animal welfare causes and I'm glad they've been caught.

Denzil' says...
3:31pm Wed 21 Jan 09

Let's hope these stupid people get the kickings they deserve whilst inside.

Lone Ranger says...
4:42pm Wed 21 Jan 09

Is it my imagination .......but do they all look as if they are failed experiments themselves !!

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