Six Britons working on behalf of Russia’s Wagner group have been sentenced to prison for setting fire to a located in London warehouse that was holding relief supplies destined for Ukraine.
Sentencing and Roles
Sentencing the men, the judge at the Old Bailey stated that they had planned a “series of terrorist and sabotage acts” in the interests of the Russian state.
The individual named Dylan Earl received a 17-year prison sentence with an additional six years on extended licence due to his “leading role”. Another defendant, Jake Reeves, a resident of Croydon, South London, was given 12 years in prison with one year on extended licence. Their admitted crimes resulted in them being the initial persons to be convicted under the National Security Act 2023.
Jakeem Rose, also a Croydon resident, was jailed for a term of eight years and ten months. Nii Mensah, from Thornton Heath, south London, was given nine years imprisonment and Ugnius Asmena, who was homeless, was given seven years. These three individuals were each found guilty of serious fire-setting and received a further year on extended licence by the court.
Ashton Evans individual involved in drug trafficking hailing from Newport, Gwent, was jailed for nine years imprisonment with an extra year on supervised release after being found guilty of failing to disclose details regarding acts of terrorism relating to a separate scheme in Mayfair.
Details of the Attack
The arson attack on a warehouse in Leyton, east London put 60 firefighters at risk and caused £1m in damage in March of the previous year.
The court heard 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 Federation.
The individuals involved selected the warehouse because it was being used to supply humanitarian aid and StarLink satellite equipment to Ukraine.
When the identical Ukrainian firm was subjected to an arson attack 10 days later in the Spanish capital, investigators from the Metropolitan Police's anti-terror unit took over the investigation.
Proof and Additional Schemes
When Earl was taken into custody, police analysis of his cellphone revealed he had videos of the warehouse fire being initiated and was in contact with the Wagner group on the Telegram messaging app, via an account with the usernames ‘Privet Bot’ and ‘Lucky Strike’.
Some of the messages indicated that reconnaissance for further “missions”, involving fire-related incidents at a dining establishment and wine shop in Mayfair owned by the Russian dissident Evgeny Chichvarkin had already taken place. The use of explosives to harm structures was also discussed.
Investigators found that 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 search of his home, police found a Russian flag, over twenty thousand pounds in currency and cocaine hydrochloride with a street value of about £34,000.
Motivations and Judicial Remarks
The court heard he was a participant in multiple pro-Russian propaganda channels and was motivated by “plain and severe avarice”.
“This case is about the efforts of the Russian Federation to gain pernicious global influence using online platforms to recruit disruptors vast distances from Moscow.”
She determined the arson attack had a “terrorist connection” regardless of whether the individuals responsible knew it. The Wagner group is banned by the British authorities as a terrorist organisation.
