Maine authorities asked for the raid as part of a probe of break-ins at hunting clubs there in 1999.

"I am going to be fighting very very vigorously. This is just an outrage," Barbarash told Reuters.

Barbarash acts as liaison between the front and the media, passing along statements from the animal rights group about its protest activities, which he says are given to him by anonymous sources after the incidents happen.

Police in Maine told a Vancouver newspaper that Barbarash, 38, was not a direct suspect, but may have information about who did the break-ins.

Barbarash admitted he was surprised by the raid, both because the Maine incidents occurred several years ago and were "minor" compared to other ALF actions since then - such as attacks on medical laboratories that use animals.

The FBI has described the ALF, and a similar group, the Earth Liberation Front, as terrorist organizations and blamed the groups for more than 600 attacks and $43 million in damage since 1996.

The incidents in Maine involved vandalism to the clubs and the removal of stuffed animals kept as trophies.

Barbarash said he believes he was targeted as part of a broader investigation into the ALF and the raid shows police still know very little about the organizations being probed.

"The only thing they have to go on is me, the public face of the ALF," he said.

A British Columbia court must approve the transfer of the seized evidence to U.S. investigators. An initial hearing is scheduled for Vancouver on Aug. 14.