Group claims it attempted bombing

An animal rights group claimed responsibility Wednesday for a recent attempted bombing of a UCLA faculty member’s home.

According to a press release by the North American Animal Liberation Press Office, the Animal Liberation Front said it had placed an “incendiary device” on Lynn Fairbanks’ Bel Air doorstep in retaliation for her involvement in animal experimentation in UCLA labs.

But the FBI, which is investigating the incident, said in a statement that the explosive device was mistakenly placed on the doorstep of the faculty member’s neighbor, a 70-year-old woman, and the device ultimately failed to ignite.

Fairbanks, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, is the director of the Center for Primate Neuroethology at the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute. She is also the director of the Vervet Research Center at the Veterans Administration Greater Los Angeles Health Care System.

In its statement, the Animal Liberation Front accused Fairbanks of “breeding monkeys for painful addiction experiments” including drugs such as ecstasy and cocaine.

“Lynn Fairbanks and those like her who make money off of addicting primates to drugs ... need to stop,” the statement read. “If the primates could escape from (their) cages they would do this to Lynn Fairbanks and worse.”

Neither UCLA officials nor a statement released by the FBI confirmed that Fairbanks was the target of the June 30 attack, and UCLA officials said the group’s description misrepresented Fairbanks’ work.

But the FBI added that the device was similar to explosives used by other animal rights and eco-terrorism groups, and should still be considered dangerous.

“It is the opinion of arson investigators that if the device had functioned properly, escape would have been difficult to impossible, given the hillside location of the house, possibly resulting in the death of the inhabitants of the residence,” the statement read.

The FBI has classified the incident as an act of terrorism because it was intended to further political or social objectives.

Judy Lin, a UCLA spokeswoman, said the university was concerned to hear about the attack.

“This is a terrorist attack, and UCLA condemns that,” she said.

She added that though the FBI is heading the investigation, UCPD is keeping an eye on the situation because it involves a member of the UCLA community.

The FBI will conduct its investigation in conjunction with the Los Angeles Police and Fire Departments, along with other counter-terrorism groups. Currently, a $10,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the perpetrators.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the FBI at (310) 477-6565.