Biography
Justin Samuel was an animal rights activist who, with Peter Young, broke onto mink farms in Iowa, South Dakota, and Wisconsin in 1997 and freed approximately 7,000 mink in what was then the largest single ALF action in U.S. history. Samuel fled the United States after the actions; he was arrested in Belgium in September 1999 and extradited to the U.S. He pleaded guilty in 2000 to two counts under the Animal Enterprise Protection Act and was sentenced to two years in federal prison.
In his plea agreement Samuel cooperated with federal prosecutors and named Peter Young as his co-defendant. Young remained at large for seven years before his 2005 capture; the prosecution that sent Young to two years in federal prison rested heavily on Samuel's testimony. Samuel served his sentence and was released well before Young was even captured. He is included here because he served meaningful federal prison time.
