Two individuals have been charged after approximately 200 minks were released from a fur farm in central Pennsylvania. Most of the animals were recovered–unlike in a similar incident last year when thousands of mink were released from the same farm into the surrounding area.
Northumberland County State Police were called shortly before 1 a.m. on Saturday. The State Troopers received reports that two individuals had been seen on camera releasing minks from the Richard H. Stahl Sons Inc. farm near Sunbury.
Police subsequently arrested two Massachusetts residents, Christopher Legere, 25, and Cara Mitrano, 27. They were charged with agricultural vandalism, theft, burglary, criminal trespass, and cruelty to animals. Both were detained at the county jail, with bail set at $150,000 each.
“Animal extremists are terrorists, plain and simple,” the U.S. Fur Commission wrote in a statement. “As defined by the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA), any person who engages in certain conduct for the purpose of damaging or interfering with the operations of an animal enterprise is a terrorist in the eyes of the law. We thank local and federal law enforcement for their continued help in finding those who perpetrate these heinous crimes.”
In the 2023 case, thousands of minks were let loose from the same central Pennsylvania fur farm when intruders cut through the perimeter fence. No one was charged following that incident.
On Sept. 17, 2023, between 6,000 and 8,000 minks were released from their pens after holes were cut in the fence. Security cameras installed after that incident enabled staff to alert police to the most recent disturbances at the fence. This time, a perimeter fence successfully contained most of the minks on the property.
“When farms are attacked by these extremists in what amounts to violent publicity stunts, the animals, the farmer owners, the community, and surrounding ecosystems suffer,” the Fur Commission stated.
“Most mink are raised on family farms; having strangers break into their property in the middle of the night, masked and dressed in black, destroying property and harming the animals that farmers have worked so hard to raise and care for is devastating for the entire family.”
The Fur Commission also disputed claims by the North American Animal Liberation press officer, Joseph Buddenberg, that mink farming is violent and cruel.
A spokesman for the Fur Commission said in a video statement that the activists are actually harming the animals by releasing them. He explained that farmed minks released into the wild usually die within 24–48 hours due to starvation, vehicle accidents, or predation. Those that do survive may resort to attacking chicken coops or other livestock on neighboring properties.
The North American Animal Liberation organization has a different perspective, and called for support for the individuals arrested for releasing the minks. It claimed that “in all likelihood, the arrestees were just innocent bystanders arrested by a desperate police force embarrassed by their inability to find those responsible for this and the previous liberation at the same farm in 2023.”
Joseph Buddenberg, the press officer for North American Animal Liberation, has denounced mink farming as violent and cruel. The organization has begun fundraising efforts to help those arrested.
Buddenberg previously served two years in federal prison for releasing minks from fur farms, as well as for vandalism property on such farms and other crimes.
The preliminary hearing for the two individuals recently arrested is set for Oct. 29. It is currently unclear if the defendants have legal representation.