ALF’s Vantaa Cell (Environmentalist Entity, Finland)

• Local Name: Elaïnten Vapautusrintama – Vantaa
• Transliteration: N/a
• Alternatives: N/a
• Status: 2016 – 2016 (Disbanded)
• Conflicts: Ecologist Militancy in Finland

The Animal Liberation Front – Vantaa Cell [EVR-V; Elaïnten Vapautusrintama] was a small and short-lived eco-anarchist militant outfit operating in Finland. On Jun. 10, 2016, its members set fire to buses at the depot of a transportation company in Helsinki’s Vantaa suburb.¹ Nine buses were destroyed or badly damaged in the incident.² Drivers who were sleeping in an adjacent building managed to save other vehicles by moving them away from the fires.³ The presence of people at the site of an attack signaled a willingness to harm people that is rare among ecologist militants.

The EVR-V subsequently claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement published on an anarchist website. In the message, the outfit stated to have targeted the company because it occasionally ferries customers to fur auctions.⁴ The EVR-V was never heard from again following this incident.