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1:15pm Monday 25th October 2010 in News
A Littlehampton animal rights activist known as ‘Mumsy’ has been jailed for six years for a shocking campaign of intimidation against an animal testing lab.
Sarah Whitehead, 53, of Thorncroft Road, led an attempt to close down Huntingdon Life Sciences by intimidating companies linked to it.
Winchester Crown Court head today how she and five others waged a wide-ranging international conspiracy of intimidation against a host of supply companies to force the closure of Cambridge-based HLS.
They used a group, Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (Shac) as a front for their illegal activities.
Action carried out included realistic hoax bombs posted to the homes of staff and offices, criminal damage, threats of violence and abusive telephone calls.
Some company directors had leaflets distributed near their home falsely telling neighbours they were convicted paedophiles and others had used tampons sent through the post saying the blood was HIV positive.
Others had words like puppy killer, murderer and scum daubed on their houses, cars or on the roads nearby.
The abuse would only stop when the company issued a capitulation statement on the Shac website and cut links with the lab.
The total cost of damage and increased security costs was £12.6 million, to around 40 companies targeted, the court heard.
Jailing Whitehead, who was called "Mumsy" by the others, for six years, Judge Keith Cutler said she led the younger members on and corrupted them.
He said she had carried out up to five direct attacks a night on one occasion and she was "a long-term campaigner and trusted insider" within the conspiracy who had not shown remorse and would be likely to offend again.
Nicole Vosper, 22, Thomas Harris, 27, Jason Mullan, 32, and Nicola Tapping, 29, were also jailed at a hearing today.
The youngest member of the conspiracy Alfie Fitzpatrick, 21, received a 12-month prison sentence suspended for two years and was ordered to complete 100 hours of community work.
The six were part of a larger conspiracy involving the founder members of Shac, Gregg and Natasha Avery and Heather Nicholson, who used the organisation as a front to intimidate companies under badges like the Animal Liberation Front or the Animal Rights Militia.
Whitehead, Vosper, of Bay View Terrace, Newquay, Cornwall, and Harris, of Somerville Road, Ringwood, Hampshire, admitted conspiracy to blackmail companies and suppliers linked to the Cambridge-based company between 2001 and 2008.
Mullan, of Holloway Road, London, Tapping, of Somerville Road, Ringwood and Fitzpatrick, of Knowle Road, Solihull, West Midlands, all pleaded guilty to conspiracy to harm Huntingdon Life Sciences from 2005 to 2008 under the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 by interfering with companies supplying them.
The maximum jail term for conspiracy to blackmail is 14 years and for conspiracy under the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 it is five years.
Other members of Shac, including the founder members Gregg Avery, Natasha Avery and Nicholson, were jailed in January 2009 at Winchester Crown Court for blackmailing companies linked to HLS.
Sentencing, the Recorder of Winchester, Judge Keith Cutler, said the well-planned and relentless campaign had been "synonymous with intimidation, violence and terror".
"The action was taken in order to distress and terrify, and in that you were successful," he told them.
He said that the lawful activities of Shac were a "thin veneer" and it was a vehicle for intimidation even though he accepted the six had a passionate opposition to animal research laboratories and had "fiercely held beliefs".
He then quoted Mr Justice Butterfield, who jailed other members of the conspiracy, when he said: "I expect you will be seen by some as martyrs for a noble cause but that would be wholly misplaced.
"You are not going to prison for expressing your beliefs, you are going to prison because you have committed a serious criminal offence."
Vosper was also described as a trusted insider by the judge and jailed for three and a half years. She took part in direct action against targets, but was described as having intelligence and ability.
Mullan's role was described as not insignificant and he had been part of Shac since 2002. The judge said he viewed with horror Mullan's behaviour while on a demonstration in Paris in April 2007 and jailed him for three years.
Harris was described a taking over the running of Shac after others were arrested in 2007 and he was fully aware of what others were doing. He was jailed for four years.
Tapping, the judge said, was not on the front line and did not carry out direct action, but she knew what was going on. She received a 15-month jail term.
Fitzpatrick was only 17 when he was part of the conspiracy. He was educated at the international school in Geneva and is from a wealthy family. The judge said he was the least involved and received the suspended sentence.
Whitehead also received a 10-year Anti-Social Behaviour Order banning her from taking part in animal rights activities with the others receiving five-year ASBOs on the same terms.
Police said that since the arrests in 2007, animals rights extremism had been dramatically reduced.
The cost of the operation was put at £4 million.
Detective Chief Inspector Andy Robbins from Kent Police, who led the operation, said: "The sentences passed today are a fitting reflection of the systematic and relentless intimidation of individuals and their employers, carried out by a small group of criminals.
"Such tactics have no place in a democratic society and in no way reflect the peaceful protests carried out by the vast majority of legitimate animal welfare campaigners."
Comments(26)
cheezburger
says...
1:51pm Mon 25 Oct 10
EroThraX
says...
2:14pm Mon 25 Oct 10
cheezburger wrote:I take it you would be fine with people going untreated for psychosis and dying extra early from heart disease etc. if we never tested our drugs on animals in preclinical trials.
Animal testing has no place in a civilised society.
Number Six
says...
3:15pm Mon 25 Oct 10
cheezburger wrote:And neither does this violent fascist thuggery
Animal testing has no place in a civilised society.
cheezburger
says...
3:50pm Mon 25 Oct 10
EroThraX wrote:Testing on animals isn't necessary for this. There are a wealth of other methods, better methods.
cheezburger wrote:I take it you would be fine with people going untreated for psychosis and dying extra early from heart disease etc. if we never tested our drugs on animals in preclinical trials.
Animal testing has no place in a civilised society.
Unfortunately it is still a necessary evil to study how drugs react in a living organism before being tested on Humans.
cheezburger
says...
3:52pm Mon 25 Oct 10
Number Six wrote:Unlike rabbits who are held down while chemicals are poured into their eyes since they have no tear ducts and cant cry.
cheezburger wrote:And neither does this violent fascist thuggery
Animal testing has no place in a civilised society.
As a former victim of animal rights terrorism, believe me the tears of joy are running down my face.
SW stop-such
Acheron
says...
4:49pm Mon 25 Oct 10
cheezburger wrote:At the moment animal testing is necessary due to the law of the land. There may well be other methods, but until the law is changed companies are doing what is required of them. Should people who earn a legal living be subject to the sort of abuse that they suffered from?
EroThraX wrote:Testing on animals isn't necessary for this. There are a wealth of other methods, better methods.
cheezburger wrote:I take it you would be fine with people going untreated for psychosis and dying extra early from heart disease etc. if we never tested our drugs on animals in preclinical trials.
Animal testing has no place in a civilised society.
Unfortunately it is still a necessary evil to study how drugs react in a living organism before being tested on Humans.
cheezburger
says...
5:21pm Mon 25 Oct 10
Acheron wrote:Should the animals?
cheezburger wrote:At the moment animal testing is necessary due to the law of the land. There may well be other methods, but until the law is changed companies are doing what is required of them. Should people who earn a legal living be subject to the sort of abuse that they suffered from?
EroThraX wrote:Testing on animals isn't necessary for this. There are a wealth of other methods, better methods.
cheezburger wrote:I take it you would be fine with people going untreated for psychosis and dying extra early from heart disease etc. if we never tested our drugs on animals in preclinical trials.
Animal testing has no place in a civilised society.
Unfortunately it is still a necessary evil to study how drugs react in a living organism before being tested on Humans.
TheInsider
says...
5:29pm Mon 25 Oct 10
sdthetruth
says...
5:53pm Mon 25 Oct 10
dcsussex
says...
6:15pm Mon 25 Oct 10
cheezburger
says...
6:20pm Mon 25 Oct 10
JHunty
says...
8:25pm Mon 25 Oct 10
dcsussex wrote:So bascially you are condoning a terroristic style campaign that denies animals, ie humans their rights. What you and the Smash Edo lot have in common is that you literaly think you are above the law, youre not. A small group of people simply do not have the right to impose their minority and extemist views on the majority through harrassment violence and intimidation. We have a mechanism for dealing with issues like animal testing and the arms industry, its called democracy, you should try it some time, you might be suprised at the results.
I think all that this group has done is neccessary and acceptable, and i find it repulsive that this woman is jailed for fighting for animal rights. Yes the actions were extreme, but it took extremeness to make the companies end trading with HLS. Nothing else worked so this lady/the group were forced into implementing their 'terrorism' as its so called. An animals life has no monetary value, has no limits to what is done for its rights, so good on this group for trying to give these animals a voice. I congratulate their actions and hope many many people take future action against animal testing in the UK.
cheezburger
says...
9:32pm Mon 25 Oct 10
JHunty wrote:If everyone thought like you we would still have no votes for women and black people denied a seat on the bus.
dcsussex wrote:So bascially you are condoning a terroristic style campaign that denies animals, ie humans their rights. What you and the Smash Edo lot have in common is that you literaly think you are above the law, youre not. A small group of people simply do not have the right to impose their minority and extemist views on the majority through harrassment violence and intimidation. We have a mechanism for dealing with issues like animal testing and the arms industry, its called democracy, you should try it some time, you might be suprised at the results.
I think all that this group has done is neccessary and acceptable, and i find it repulsive that this woman is jailed for fighting for animal rights. Yes the actions were extreme, but it took extremeness to make the companies end trading with HLS. Nothing else worked so this lady/the group were forced into implementing their 'terrorism' as its so called. An animals life has no monetary value, has no limits to what is done for its rights, so good on this group for trying to give these animals a voice. I congratulate their actions and hope many many people take future action against animal testing in the UK.
The tactics used by this group are exactly the tactics that Smash Edo started out using when their campaign began, its a matter of record, Bert so dont bother with the personal insults
sussexladybabe
says...
9:35pm Mon 25 Oct 10
JHunty wrote:I echo these comments because the intimidation tactics they use are the same that any fascist group will use to push their minority views on others. In fact these groups were silently condoned by the last Labour government.
dcsussex wrote:So bascially you are condoning a terroristic style campaign that denies animals, ie humans their rights. What you and the Smash Edo lot have in common is that you literaly think you are above the law, youre not. A small group of people simply do not have the right to impose their minority and extemist views on the majority through harrassment violence and intimidation. We have a mechanism for dealing with issues like animal testing and the arms industry, its called democracy, you should try it some time, you might be suprised at the results.
I think all that this group has done is neccessary and acceptable, and i find it repulsive that this woman is jailed for fighting for animal rights. Yes the actions were extreme, but it took extremeness to make the companies end trading with HLS. Nothing else worked so this lady/the group were forced into implementing their 'terrorism' as its so called. An animals life has no monetary value, has no limits to what is done for its rights, so good on this group for trying to give these animals a voice. I congratulate their actions and hope many many people take future action against animal testing in the UK.
The tactics used by this group are exactly the tactics that Smash Edo started out using when their campaign began, its a matter of record, Bert so dont bother with the personal insults
nocando
says...
10:40pm Mon 25 Oct 10
dcsussex
says...
10:43pm Mon 25 Oct 10
JHunty wrote:dont ever think human pain is the same an animals pain.
dcsussex wrote: I think all that this group has done is neccessary and acceptable, and i find it repulsive that this woman is jailed for fighting for animal rights. Yes the actions were extreme, but it took extremeness to make the companies end trading with HLS. Nothing else worked so this lady/the group were forced into implementing their 'terrorism' as its so called. An animals life has no monetary value, has no limits to what is done for its rights, so good on this group for trying to give these animals a voice. I congratulate their actions and hope many many people take future action against animal testing in the UK.So bascially you are condoning a terroristic style campaign that denies animals, ie humans their rights. What you and the Smash Edo lot have in common is that you literaly think you are above the law, youre not. A small group of people simply do not have the right to impose their minority and extemist views on the majority through harrassment violence and intimidation. We have a mechanism for dealing with issues like animal testing and the arms industry, its called democracy, you should try it some time, you might be suprised at the results. The tactics used by this group are exactly the tactics that Smash Edo started out using when their campaign began, its a matter of record, Bert so dont bother with the personal insults
TheInsider
says...
11:24pm Mon 25 Oct 10
Hard times
says...
2:13am Tue 26 Oct 10
Burgess901
says...
12:00pm Tue 26 Oct 10
Number Six
says...
1:20pm Tue 26 Oct 10
dcsussex wrote:"your so called 'democracy' is not working my friend",
JHunty wrote:dont ever think human pain is the same an animals pain. humans can express directly their pain and anger through a voice which other humans understand, animals cant. your so called 'democracy' is not working my friend, animals are still being tortured and maimed on a daily basis. Go conform and bury your head in a bucket of sand, sound like thats what you do best jhunty! for the record - i think smash-edo are a dissfunctional group with nothing better to do... oh, which of your categories does that put me in now????????? lol @ u...dcsussex wrote: I think all that this group has done is neccessary and acceptable, and i find it repulsive that this woman is jailed for fighting for animal rights. Yes the actions were extreme, but it took extremeness to make the companies end trading with HLS. Nothing else worked so this lady/the group were forced into implementing their 'terrorism' as its so called. An animals life has no monetary value, has no limits to what is done for its rights, so good on this group for trying to give these animals a voice. I congratulate their actions and hope many many people take future action against animal testing in the UK.So bascially you are condoning a terroristic style campaign that denies animals, ie humans their rights. What you and the Smash Edo lot have in common is that you literaly think you are above the law, youre not. A small group of people simply do not have the right to impose their minority and extemist views on the majority through harrassment violence and intimidation. We have a mechanism for dealing with issues like animal testing and the arms industry, its called democracy, you should try it some time, you might be suprised at the results. The tactics used by this group are exactly the tactics that Smash Edo started out using when their campaign began, its a matter of record, Bert so dont bother with the personal insults
sussexbornandbred
says...
1:28pm Tue 26 Oct 10
MantaRay1
says...
3:11pm Tue 26 Oct 10
Baldseagull
says...
3:11pm Tue 26 Oct 10
dcsussex wrote:I believe that a senior member of PETA, a supposed vegan, justifies her own use of insulin, a product extracted from the pancreas of pigs, as necessary to help her carry on the fight for animal rights, including the right not to be killed for creation of human medicines!
JHunty wrote:dont ever think human pain is the same an animals pain.
dcsussex wrote: I think all that this group has done is neccessary and acceptable, and i find it repulsive that this woman is jailed for fighting for animal rights. Yes the actions were extreme, but it took extremeness to make the companies end trading with HLS. Nothing else worked so this lady/the group were forced into implementing their 'terrorism' as its so called. An animals life has no monetary value, has no limits to what is done for its rights, so good on this group for trying to give these animals a voice. I congratulate their actions and hope many many people take future action against animal testing in the UK.So bascially you are condoning a terroristic style campaign that denies animals, ie humans their rights. What you and the Smash Edo lot have in common is that you literaly think you are above the law, youre not. A small group of people simply do not have the right to impose their minority and extemist views on the majority through harrassment violence and intimidation. We have a mechanism for dealing with issues like animal testing and the arms industry, its called democracy, you should try it some time, you might be suprised at the results. The tactics used by this group are exactly the tactics that Smash Edo started out using when their campaign began, its a matter of record, Bert so dont bother with the personal insults
humans can express directly their pain and anger through a voice which other humans understand, animals cant.
your so called 'democracy' is not working my friend, animals are still being tortured and maimed on a daily basis.
Go conform and bury your head in a bucket of sand, sound like thats what you do best jhunty!
for the record - i think smash-edo are a dissfunctional group with nothing better to do...
oh, which of your categories does that put me in now????????? lol @ u...
nocando
says...
8:25pm Wed 27 Oct 10
Ian E Brewers
says...
11:22am Thu 28 Oct 10
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dunderheads says...
1:28pm Mon 25 Oct 10