In the latest incident of violence against animal researchers at the University of California at Los Angeles, an extremist group has claimed responsibility for torching two vehicles belonging to an individual who lives near a UCLA researcher but is otherwise unaffiliated with the university.

A statement issued by the university denounces the attack and explains that the victim was apparently a mistaken target.

“Words cannot express the contempt we hold for these acts of cowardice that have now put in harm’s way not only our faculty, students, and staff but their families, friends, and neighbors,” Gene D. Block, UCLA’s chancellor, said in the statement.

A series of attacks during the past two years prompted a judge in Santa Monica, Calif., to issue a temporary restraining order in February against five people and three underground animal-rights groups. Legal proceedings on a permanent injunction are set to begin in early 2009.

A string of recent attacks against the homes and property of animal researchers has led some people to conclude that extremists are shifting their focus away from laboratories and becoming more aggressive in their attacks. —Caitlin Moran