Six Britons acting for Russia’s Wagner group have been sentenced to prison for setting fire to a London-based warehouse that was storing relief supplies intended for Ukraine.
Court Rulings and Involvement
Sentencing the men, the judge at the central criminal court remarked that they had planned a “series of terrorist and sabotage acts” in the interests of the Russian state.
The individual named Dylan Earl was given a 17-year prison sentence with an extra six-year period on supervised release due to his “primary involvement”. Another defendant, Jake Reeves, from Croydon in south London, was sentenced to twelve years in jail with one year on extended licence. The offences they admitted made them the initial persons to be found guilty under the 2023 National Security Act.
Jakeem Rose, also from Croydon, was jailed for eight years and 10 months. Nii Mensah, from Thornton Heath, south London, was given nine years and Ugnius Asmena, 21, who was without a fixed address, was handed seven years. These three individuals were each convicted of serious fire-setting and given a additional year on extended licence by the court.
Ashton Evans drug dealer hailing from Newport, Gwent, was sentenced to nine years plus a further year on supervised release after being convicted of failing to disclose details regarding acts of terrorism relating to a separate scheme in Mayfair.
Details of the Attack
The deliberate fire on a warehouse in Leyton, east London put 60 firefighters at risk and resulted in £1m in damage in March last year.
The proceedings revealed that the 21-year-old Earl and Reeves, 24 remained in their residences while coordinating the incident for the Wagner group, acting on behalf of the Russian government.
The individuals involved targeted the warehouse because it was being used to supply emergency relief and StarLink satellite equipment to Ukraine.
When the same Ukrainian company was hit by an intentional fire 10 days later in the Spanish capital, detectives from the Met’s counter-terrorism command took over the probe.
Evidence and Further Plans
When Earl was taken into custody, police analysis of his cellphone revealed he had videos of the storage facility blaze being initiated and was in contact with the Wagner organization on Telegram, via an user profile with the usernames ‘Privet Bot account’ and ‘Lucky Strike alias’.
Some of the communications indicated that preliminary surveillance for further “missions”, involving fire-related incidents at a dining establishment and wine shop in Mayfair belonging to the Russian dissident Evgeny Chichvarkin had already taken place. The use of explosives to harm structures was also discussed.
Investigators found that the defendant Earl was also raising the potential abduction of the dissident Chichvarkin and “sending him back to Russia to face prison”.
The individual involved in narcotics from Elmesthorpe, Leicestershire had talked about another potential attack in the Czech Republic.
In a residence inspection, police found a flag of Russia, more than £20,000 in cash and cocaine with a market value of about £34,000.
Motivations and Judicial Remarks
The proceedings revealed he was a member of multiple pro-Russian propaganda channels and was driven by “simple and ugly greed”.
“This case is about the efforts of the Russian Federation to gain pernicious global influence using social media to enlist saboteurs vast distances from Moscow.”
She determined the fire incident had a “link to terrorism” regardless of whether the individuals responsible knew it. The Wagner organization is proscribed by the British authorities as a terrorist organisation.
