A jury in North Carolina has found animal rights activist Wayne Hsiung, a founder of the group Direct Action Everywhere, guilty of felony charges for stealing a baby goat from a ranch, according to media reports.
Hsiung posted a live video to Facebook showing he and three other activists carrying out the "open rescue" of the goat from the Sospiro Ranch in Pisgah Forest.
The ranch's owner testified that he faced harassment after the incident and ultimately decided to sell the farm and move out of state.
It is the first time Hsiung has been convicted on criminal charges in connection with removing animals from private property: he faces similar charges in several states, and other cases have been dropped, according to berkeleyside.org.
Hsiung ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Berkeley, Calif., last year.
Hsuing said he plans to appeal.
