Six Britons working on behalf of Russia’s Wagner group have been handed jail terms for igniting a London-based warehouse that was holding relief supplies destined for Ukraine.
Sentencing and Roles
While delivering the sentences, the presiding judge at the Old Bailey stated that they had planned a “campaign of terrorism and sabotage” in the interests of the Russian state.
Dylan Earl received a 17-year prison sentence with an additional six years on extended licence due to his “primary involvement”. Another defendant, Jake Reeves, a resident of Croydon, South London, was given 12 years in prison with an additional year on supervised release. The offences they admitted made them the first individuals to be found guilty under the National Security Act 2023.
Jakeem Rose, aged 23, also a Croydon resident, 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 given seven years. These three individuals were each convicted of serious fire-setting and given a further year on supervised release by the court.
Ashton Evans drug dealer from Newport in Gwent, was sentenced to nine years with an extra year on supervised release after being convicted of withholding information about acts of terrorism connected to another plot in Mayfair.
Details of the Attack
The deliberate fire on a Leyton-based storage facility in East London put 60 firefighters at risk and caused £1m in damage in March of the previous year.
The proceedings revealed that the 21-year-old Earl and the 24-year-old Reeves did not leave their bedrooms while organising the attack for the Wagner group, acting on behalf of the Russian Federation.
The individuals involved selected the storage facility because it was being utilized for providing humanitarian aid and StarLink satellite equipment to Ukraine.
When the same Ukrainian company was hit by an arson attack 10 days later in the Spanish capital, investigators from the Metropolitan Police's anti-terror unit took over the investigation.
Evidence and Further Plans
When Earl was taken into custody, police analysis of his cellphone revealed he had videos of the warehouse fire being initiated and was in communication with the Wagner group on the Telegram messaging app, via an account with the handles ‘Privet Bot’ and ‘Lucky Strike’.
Some of the communications showed that preliminary surveillance for additional operations, involving fire-related incidents at a dining establishment and wine store in Mayfair district belonging to the Russian opposition figure Evgeny Chichvarkin had already been carried out. The employment of explosive devices to harm structures was also deliberated.
Detectives found that the defendant Earl was also considering the potential abduction of Chichvarkin and “sending him back to Russia to confront imprisonment”.
The individual involved in narcotics from Elmesthorpe in Leicestershire had discussed an additional planned incident in the Czech nation.
In a residence inspection, law enforcement located a flag of Russia, more than £20,000 in cash and cocaine hydrochloride with a street value of about £34,000.
Driving Factors and Court Comments
The court heard he was a participant in numerous pro-Russian propaganda channels and was motivated by “plain and severe avarice”.
“This case is about the efforts of the Russian Federation to acquire harmful worldwide sway using online platforms to recruit disruptors far from the Russian capital.”
She found the fire incident had a “terrorist connection” irrespective of if the perpetrators were aware of it. The Wagner group is banned by the British authorities as a terrorist organisation.
