US animal campaigners convicted

Animal rights activists have widely targeted HLS

A US jury has convicted an animal rights group and six of its members of inciting violence and terror against a UK firm involved in animal testing.

The six from the Shac group were charged with offences against Huntingdon Life Sciences.

They face fines and possible jail terms of up to five years for each offence.

HLS was originally based in Cambridgeshire, but moved its main office to the US after a harassment campaign by animal rights activists.

First case

The six members of Shac were found guilty by the federal jury in New Jersey after a three-week court case and three days of deliberation.

Shac is an acronym for Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty, and for the last five years the Philadelphia-based group has targeted the group.

Huntingdon Life Sciences now has its headquarters in New Jersey, but its main laboratories are in Cambridgeshire in Britain.

Its employees have sometimes been victims of violent attacks as well as extreme ongoing intimidation.

The company has also suffered financially and its listing on the New York Stock Exchange was put on hold after one of Shac's most recent campaigns.

It is believed to be the first case under a new law enacted in 1992, known as the Animal Enterprise Protection Act.