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| Activists guilty of hate campaign | Activists guilty of hate campaign |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| Four animal rights activists have been convicted of orchestrating a blackmail campaign against firms that supplied an animal testing research centre. | Four animal rights activists have been convicted of orchestrating a blackmail campaign against firms that supplied an animal testing research centre. |
| The group used threats, criminal damage and bomb hoaxes to intimidate firms associated with Huntingdon Life Sciences based in Cambridge. | The group used threats, criminal damage and bomb hoaxes to intimidate firms associated with Huntingdon Life Sciences based in Cambridge. |
| The four, members of Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty from Hampshire and London, had denied the charges. | The four, members of Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty from Hampshire and London, had denied the charges. |
| A fifth defendant was cleared by the Winchester Crown Court jury. | A fifth defendant was cleared by the Winchester Crown Court jury. |
| The verdict on Tuesday came after seven days of deliberation. | The verdict on Tuesday came after seven days of deliberation. |
| Heather Nicholson, 41, of Eversley, Hampshire; Gerrah Selby, 20, of Chiswick, London; Daniel Wadham, 21, of Bromley, south London, and Gavin Medd-Hall, 45, of Croydon, south London, were accused of being closely involved in a campaign, from 2001 until 2007, which targeted companies in Britain and Europe. | Heather Nicholson, 41, of Eversley, Hampshire; Gerrah Selby, 20, of Chiswick, London; Daniel Wadham, 21, of Bromley, south London, and Gavin Medd-Hall, 45, of Croydon, south London, were accused of being closely involved in a campaign, from 2001 until 2007, which targeted companies in Britain and Europe. |
| Another man, Trevor Holmes, 51, from Newcastle, was cleared. | Another man, Trevor Holmes, 51, from Newcastle, was cleared. |
| Paedophile claims | Paedophile claims |
| Earlier, three others, Gregg Avery and Natasha Avery, both of Hampshire, and Daniel Amos, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to blackmail. | Earlier, three others, Gregg Avery and Natasha Avery, both of Hampshire, and Daniel Amos, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to blackmail. |
| The court heard the defendants were part of Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC), which was based near Hook, Hampshire, and bugged by police as part of their investigation. | |
| The group used threats such as claiming managers of the companies were paedophiles, sending hoax bombs parcels, causing criminal damage and making threatening telephone calls to force them to cut links with HLS. | The group used threats such as claiming managers of the companies were paedophiles, sending hoax bombs parcels, causing criminal damage and making threatening telephone calls to force them to cut links with HLS. |
| The court heard Ms Nicholson, from Eversley in Hampshire, was a founder member of SHAC, which managed the "menacing" campaigns against the firms. | The court heard Ms Nicholson, from Eversley in Hampshire, was a founder member of SHAC, which managed the "menacing" campaigns against the firms. |