Revolutionary Cells Animal Liberation Brigade strikes again?

PLEASANTON - Police are investigating an apparent bomb blast at Shaklee Corporation early this morning.

The FBI, and agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are working with Pleasanton police at the scene on Willow Road, a block from the Dublin/Pleasanton BART station.

Police say they received reports of a blast at about 4:30 a.m. Police said there were several security guards on duty in the building when the explosion went off, but no one was hurt by the blast, which caused minor glass damage near the south entrance to the building.

Evidence technicians in white clean suits were at the crime scene, while other investigators were sent in to secure the Shaklee building. Shaklee offices were closed for the day, but are expected to reopen Monday.

Streets and some businesses surrounding Shaklee were closed off, but PeopleSoft, which has offices next to Shaklee, was urging its workers to come in to work today.

Pleasanton police Lt. Dave Spiller said the department received several 911 calls reporting an explosion in the Hacienda Business Park, and the fire department received an automated call and reported to the scene. Firefighters and police secured the scene but didn't find any suspects or other information.

The FBI was not releasing any information about the device, but earlier Spiller said it appeared some time of plastic explosion was used and that a kitchen timer device had been found nearby.

Shaklee is part of a group of companies operated by Yamanouchi Consumer Inc. (YCI), a diversified global consumer products company, a division of Yamanouchi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., one of the largest and most profitable pharmaceutical companies in Japan with operations worldwide and a customer of Huntington Life Science.

Biotechnology company Chiron Corp was a target of a similar bombing on Aug. 28. No one was injured, and a group called The Revolutionary Cells claimed responsibility in an anonymous e-mail.

The FBI thinks that the Revolutionary Cells may be a newly formed front or offshoot of the Animal Liberation Front, which has become notorious for campaigns that involve raids on fur companies, mink farms, restaurants and animal research labs.