Frontline News Latest From ELF

For Immediate Release
January 12, 2003

THREE PLEAD GUILTY TO EARTH LIBERATION ACTIONS - RICHMOND, VIRGINIA

The ELF Press Office has learned that three self-identified members of the Earth Liberation Front have plead guilty to charges of conspiracy to destroy by fire vehicles and property used in interstate commerce as a result of ELF-claimed actions that took place in and around Richmond, Virginia in 2002.

Adam Blackwell, Aaron Linas, and John Wade plead guilty to the charges separately on December 18, January 7, and January 12th.

Specifically, the three plead guilty to acts of earth liberation that incurred over $200,000 in damages over the course of a one-year period which included:
* damage to the gas and hydraulic tanks of construction vehicles as well as electrical systems on those vehicles
* the defacement of glass windows at McDonald's and Burger King restaurants with etching cream;

* monkeywrenching of the electrical systems, doors, and windows of homes under construction in Goochland County;

* attempts to destroy a crane and other construction vehicles being used at a construction site for the Short Pump Town Center;
* etching "ELF" and "SUV" on the windows and bodies of 25 SUVs at the Universal Ford dealership.
* the destruction of various SUVs, and Jeeps owned by dealerships and individuals.

Sentencing for the three will occur in April, though news reports indicate they have already agreed to pay restitution of $200,000 as part of the plea agreement.

Although these arrests will impact the individuals involved, and the community in which they live, this does not pose a problem for the Earth Liberation Front as a whole.

The ELF operates using the strategy of leaderless resistance, where individuals and groups who carry out actions never know or meet others who may also be active.

This means that even though one group may be broken up through legal action such as this, others involved in the ELF will not be affected

In the history of the ELF, there have been very few arrests and even fewer convictions.
None of these law-enforcement actions have put an end to the Earth
Liberation Front in North America, which in 2003 had a record-setting year in terms of total property damage.

The ELF Press Office supports those who are facing repression at the hands of state and federal law enforcement and is available for e-mail interviews concerning this matter.
ELF Press Office
elfpress@resist.ca
http://www.earthliberationfront.com
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IDIOT TERRORIST UPDATE

UNDERGROUND DIRECT ACTION TOTALS FOR 2003 Reply to: frontline@rocketmail.com Frontline Information Service - 01/13/04 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - UNDERGROUND DIRECT ACTION TOTALS FOR 2003

[Note: This Report was compiled by the Earth Liberation Front Press Office . The 2003 report differs from years past in that it does *not* report on unclaimed actions as previous reports have done. This makes it appear as though damage totals have decreased when compared to totals arrived at last year factoring in unclaimed actions.]

There were 75 illegal direct actions taken in North America in 2003, an increase of 8% over claimed illegal direct actions taken in 2002. Animal liberation actions comprised just under 50%, or 37 actions, while 38 actions were committed for a combination of earth liberation, anti-GMO, anti-SUV, anti-development, anti-war and other reasons.

(Earth liberation actions include those taken against forest destruction, new developments, SUVs, gmo crops and research, police and military, globalization, and other reasons.)

The Animal Liberation Front took action on 18 occasions, the same number as in 2002. The Earth Liberation Front took action on 13 occasions, mirroring the number of actions of 2002.

Other groups claiming actions included the Revolutionary Cells - Animal Liberation Brigade, Direct Action Front, The Frogs, and the Vegan Dumpster Militia. Several actions were additionally claimed by anonymous groups.

What did increase dramatically in 2003 were overall damage totals as a result of direct action.

The Earth Liberation Front alone caused upwards of $55 million dollars in damages in a series of anti-development and SUV dealership attacks that captured headlines across North America. It is likely that damage totals in 2003 were close to $60 million, though the exact figure is difficult to determine. * * * * *

The following is a list of all animal and earth related actions carried out and claimed in 2003.

(Note: HLS-related - means the actions was related to the ongoing campaign against Huntingdon Life Sciences - there were 21 such actions in 2003)

January 1, 2003 - Erie, Pennsylvania Earth Liberation Front ELF torches Bob Ferrando Ford Lincoln Mercury Dealership causing $90,000 in damages. Specifically targeted were SUVs in the lot.

January 1, 2003 - Heartland, California Animal Liberation Front 4 chickens rescued from AAA egg farm.

February 4, 2003 - Villa Park, Illinois Animal Liberation Front Lines to brakes and refrigeration systems on a fleet of trucks belonging to Supreme Lobster were cut. Responsibility claimed by communique.

February 22, 2003 - Hinsdale, Illinois Anonymous - HLS-related Offices of Deloitte and Touche vandalized with anti-Huntingdon Life Sciences Graffiti.
February 25th, 2003 - Edmond, Oklahoma Anonymous - HLS-related Windows broken at Legacy Trading for links to HLS.

February 27, 2003 - Berlin, Maryland Animal Liberation Front - HLS-related 115 Chickens liberated from Merial Labs and rehomed.

March 6, 2003 - Chico, California Animal Liberation Front Attempted fire at Chico, Calif Mcdonald's - ALF-graffiti left behind.

March 18, 2003 - Edison, New Jersey Direct Action Front Armed Forces Recruiting Centre - front door shattered and inside offices destroyed in protest of the US invasion of Iraq.

March 21, 2003 - Superior Township, Michigan Earth Liberation Front Two luxury homes set on fire in a Superior Township housing development in an action against urban sprawl. Damages estimated at $400,000.

March 23, 2003 - Los Angeles, California Anonymous - HLS-related and anti-fur Three actions on the same evening saw windows broken at the home of Rodney Armstead (Medial Diagnostics Management), at E*Trade in Beverly Hills, and at "Bobby Trendy Designs" (in protest of fur sales).

March 25, 2003 - Petaluma, California Anonymous Rancho Veal Slaughterhouse set ablaze causing $10,000 in damages. Graffiti left behind read "stop the killing".

March 27, 2003 - San Diego, California Animal Liberation Front - HLS-Related Home visit to Claire MacDonald, representative for Huntingdon Life Sciences. Property vandalized with red paint, and graffiti. Tires punctured on vehicle.

March 28, 2003 - Montgomery, Alabama Earth Liberation Front Vehicles at Navy Recruiting Headquarters in Montgomery attacked. Damages included messages spraypainted on three Navy sedans and two Navy vans, and one large two-panel truck was set on fire.

March 28, 2003 - Commack, New York Anonymous - HLS-related Home visit to Phillip J. Petito, "Controler" at CBC America's NY headquarters. Home, SUV and 25-foot boat damaged and covered in paint and spray-painted with anti-HLS slogans.

March 30, 2003 - Los Angeles, California Animal Liberation Front - HLS-related CBC America's California Branch Office windows smashed and building spraypainted.

April 04, 2003 - Lockport, Illinois Animal Liberation Front Market convicted of selling tiger meat set on fire.

May 3-4, 2003 - Gainesville, Florida Anonymous 30 SUVs and several luxury cars damaged with glass etching fluid.

May 5, 2003 - Chico, California Anonymous Two incendiaries placed at an auto-dealer - failed to ignite.

May 18, 2003 - Los Angeles, California Anonymous - HLS-related Home visit to Jim Devico, customer service for Toxweb. Front door, steps and walkway covered in red paint.

June 3,2003 - Chico, California Earth Liberation Front Attempted anti-sprawl fire at Sterling Oaks development claimed by ELF.

June 4, 2003 - Macomb County, Michigan Earth Liberation Front ELF sets fire to two luxury homes in a Macomb County housing development in an action against urban sprawl. Damages estimated at $700,000.

June 9, 2003 - McAllen, Texas The Frogs 3 locks glued on backhoe digging a canal.

June 16, 2003 - McAllen, Texas The Frogs Dirt poured in fuel and air intake of 1 piece of equipment.

June 17, 2003 - Edinburg, Texas The Frogs At construction site of subdivision, survey stakes pulled, FOR SALE signs removed, roofing nails scattered on street.

June 23rd, 2003 - Edmond, Oklahoma Animal Liberation Front - HLS-related Home visit to Skip Boruchin of Legacy Trading. Home covered in paint and slogans. Cable, DSL and Phone Lines to the home cut. Action dedicated to arrested activist Lindsay Parme.

June 29, 2003 - Rockaway, New Jersey Animal Liberation Front Windows broken, and graffiti left at the drive-through of a McDonald's restaurant.

June 30, 2003 - Edinburg, Texas The Frogs Roofing nails scattered on street at subdivision construction site.

July, 2003 - McAllen, Texas The Frogs 1 tree spiked.
July 2, 2003 - South Windsor Connecticut Earth Liberation Front House under construction in new development spraypainted.

July 18, 2003 - McAllen, Texas The Frogs Electric meter on a bank billboard smashed.

July 19, 2003 - McAllen, Texas The Frogs Dirt and grass put in air intake of 2 pieces of equipment.

July 20, 2003 - Edinburg, Texas The Frogs Sand poured in diesel/oil of truck and six pieces of equipment.

July 20, 2003 Animal Liberation Front - HLS-related Home visit to Daryl Dorcy, lobbyist for Abbott Labs (client of HLS). Home covered in paint and slogans.

July 26, 2003 - Mercedes, Texas The Frogs At an experimental GM cotton crop, all 40-50 signs labeling different varieties were removed, making differentiation difficult to impossible.

July 27, 2003 - Mission, Texas The Frogs Dirt poured in diesel/oil of 4 pieces of equipment.

July 27, 2003 - Santa Rosa, California Anonymous Home visit to Didier Jaubert, part-owner of Sonoma Foie Gras. Red paint and glass etching cream used to vandalize home, locks glued, and slogans spraypainted.

July 30, 2003 - Sonoma, California Anonymous Home visit to Laurent Manrique, head chef of Sonoma Saveurs (owned by Sonoma Foie Gras). Red paint used on home and statues, glass etching cream on car windows, paint stripper used on car and slogans left around property.

July 31, 2003 - New Orleans, Louisiana Animal Liberation Front Four train cars belonging to Barnum and Bailey Circus spraypainted with anti-torture slogans.

August 01,2003 - San Diego, California Earth Liberation Front In the largest act of environmental sabotage in US history, the ELF claims responsibility for a $50 million fire in San Diego, California, that destroyed an unfinished five-story condominium complex.

August 01, 2003 - McAllen, Texas The Frogs 3 pieces of equipment working on a canal had dirt poured in their fuel tanks.

August 01, 2003 - Edinburg, Texas The Frogs 1 truck, 3 pieces of equipment had dirt poured in their diesel and 1 piece had dirt put in its air intake.

August 06, 2003 - San Francisco, California Anonymous 17 Starbucks outlets vandalized with glue on windows, "for lease" signs posted, and locks jammed and glued shut.

August 12, 2003 - Sonoma, California Anonymous Sonoma Saveurs restaurant, linked to Sonoma Foie Gras, attacked by unknown individuals opposing the cruel practices of producing foie gras. Concrete was poured into drain holes and then several water valves were turned on to flood the restaurant. Red paint was used to cover every fixture, and slogans were painted on every wall.

August 22, 2003 - West Covina, California Earth Liberation Front Four SUV dealerships attacked causing an estimated $2.5 Million in damages. In West Covina, California fire ripped through a GM auto dealership, destroying and damaging several SUVS including several Hummer H2s. A warehouse on the site was also destroyed by fire.

August 23, 2003 - Piedmont, California Anonymous - HLS-related Home visit to Linda Short, VP at Chiron Corporation (linked to HLS). Car windows treated with glass-etched slogans.

August 24th, 2003 - Sultan, Washington Animal Liberation Front 10,000 mink were liberated from a fur farm on the night of August 24th. Damage estimated at $500,000.

August 27, 2003 Animal Liberation Front - HLS-related Home visit to Kazuo Okahshi, Sr. VP to Sumitrans. Home and other property covered in spraypainted slogans.

August 28th, 2003 - Emeryville, California Animal Liberation Brigade - HLS-related Two pipe bombs exploded at the offices of Chiron Corporation, one of the largest international biotech firms located in the United States. According to the communique, this action was aimed at Chiron's ties to Huntingdon Life Sciences.

August 29, 2003 - Fairbanks, Alaska Earth Liberation Front Concrete walls and construction equipment spraypainted at a Walmart construction site.

September 02, 2003 - Montreal, Quebec Anonymous - HLS-related Sumitomo offices in Montreal spray-painted with slogans.

September 02, 2003 - Houston, Texas The Frogs 20 sport utility vehicles attacked at a dealership with pellet guns, scratched paint and slashed tires. Damages totaled $60,000.

September 05, 2003 - Santa Fe, New

Mexico Earth Liberation Front Action against SUV dealer in New Mexico - SUVS spraypainted with messages naming the seven deadly sins. 1/3 of the dealership's stock was marked, leaving thousands of dollars in damages.

September 19,2003 - San Diego, California Earth Liberation Front Action against urban sprawl in the upscale Carmel Valley neighbourhood of San Diego, torching four houses and causing an estimated $1 million in damages.

September 19, 2003 - Edinburg, Texas The Frogs 1 piece of equipment has dirt put in diesel.

September 23, 2003 - Mecosta County, Michigan Earth Liberation Front Incendiaries left at a pumping station supplying a water bottling plant owned by Nestle Waters North America. Incendiaries failed to ignite and were removed from the station without incident.

September 25, 2003 - Lousiana Animal Liberation Front

An Animal Liberation Front Action at the Louisiana State University Inhalation Toxicology Research Facility did a total of $300,000 in damages. Equipment used in experiments was destroyed and red paint was splashed on the floors and walls in a direct action against animal testing and vivisection experiments being carried out by university laboratories.

September 28, 2003 - McAllen, Texas The Frogs Sand poured in diesel of 1 piece of equipment.

September 30, 2003 - California Animal Liberation Brigade - HLS-related 10 lb ammonium nitrate bomb packed with nails left at Shaklee Inc.No one harmed in explosion.

October 03, 2003 - Santa Monica, California Animal Liberation Front Home of the head of Animal Services for Los Angeles vandalized. Jerry Greenwalt's property and vehicle was splattered with red paint.

October 8, 2003 - Jemez Mountains, New Mexico Earth Liberation Front Construction equipment belonging to the US Forest Service in the Jemez Mountains (New Mexico) had electrical wires cut, tires cut and windows broken.

October (mid), 2003 - Portland, Maine Acadian Green Brigade - Earth Liberation Front Action against Boise Cascade resulted in 8 delivery trucks and two trailers having tires punctured, locks glued and slogans spraypainted across the building's main entrance.

October 24th, 2003 Anonymous Sabotage at the site of a Walmart under construction in Martinsville, Indiana includes the pulling of survey stakes, graffiti, and sabotage to several pieces of heavy machinery.

November 03, 2003 - New Hyde Park, Long Island Animal Liberation Front - HLS-related Home visit to G.W. of Mellon Investment results in paint damage, smashed windows and spraypainted slogans. Mellon cut their ties with HLS two days after this action. Action in memory of Barry Horne.

November 05, 2003 - Port Washington, New York Animal Liberation Front - HLS-related. Home visit to Yasutsugu Kawahara, assistant to the President of Sumitomo America. Anti-HLS and anti-vivisection slogans spraypainted around property. Action in memory of Barry Horne.

November 7, 2003 - Asheville, North Carolina Animal Liberation Front Two delivery vans belonging to Little Pigs Bar-B-Que restaurant smashed up and painted with slogans.
November 17, 2003 Anonymous - HLS-related HLS CFO Richard Michaelson's car damaged by paint-stripper.

November 30, 2003 Vegan Dumpster Militia - HLS-Related Home visit to Kevin Wiseman, of Forest Pharmaceuticals - house covered in dumpstered food.

December 7, 2003 - Willow Grove, Pennsylvania Anonymous - HLS-related Slogans painted and locks glued at Sumitomo`s regional office in Pennsylvania.
December 19, 2003 - Willow Grove, Pennsylvania Anonymous - HLS-related

Home visit to Sumitomo`s regional manager Mark Peckman. Paint stripper poured on vehicles, locks glued, and red spraypaint used to mark property and paint slogans. A second action at the Sumitomo regional office saw slogans spraypainted on the building. ************************
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