A group of six individuals from Britain acting for the Wagner mercenary group linked to Russia have been sentenced to prison for setting fire to a London-based storage unit that was holding relief supplies destined for Ukraine.
Sentencing and Roles
Sentencing the men, the judge at the central criminal court stated that they had orchestrated a “campaign of terrorism and sabotage” to benefit the Russian state.
Dylan Earl was given a 17-year prison sentence with an extra six-year period on extended licence due to his “leading role”. Another defendant, Jake Reeves, from Croydon in south London, was sentenced to 12 years in jail with an additional year on supervised release. Their admitted crimes made them the first individuals to be found guilty under the National Security Act 2023.
Jakeem Rose, aged 23, also a Croydon resident, was sentenced to a term of eight years and ten months. Nii Mensah, a Thornton Heath, South London local, was sentenced to nine years and Ugnius Asmena, 21, who was homeless, was given seven years in prison. These three individuals were each found guilty of serious fire-setting and received a further year on extended licence by the court.
Ashton Evans, a 20-year-old drug dealer from Newport in Gwent, was jailed for nine years imprisonment with an extra year on supervised release after being convicted of withholding details regarding terrorist acts connected to a separate scheme in the Mayfair area.
Details of the Attack
The arson attack 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, representing the Russian government.
The group targeted the storage facility because it was being used to supply humanitarian aid and StarLink satellite equipment to Ukraine.
When the same Ukrainian company was hit by an arson attack 10 days later in Madrid, detectives from the Met’s counter-terrorism command assumed control of the probe.
Proof and Additional Schemes
When Earl was arrested, police analysis of his cellphone revealed he had videos of the warehouse fire being started and was in contact with the Wagner organization on the Telegram messaging app, via an user profile with the handles ‘Privet Bot account’ and ‘Lucky Strike’.
Some of the messages showed that preliminary surveillance for additional operations, involving arson attacks at a restaurant and wine store in Mayfair owned by the Russian opposition figure Evgeny Chichvarkin had already taken place. The use of explosives to harm structures was also discussed.
Investigators discovered that the defendant Earl was also considering the possibility of kidnapping Chichvarkin and “sending him back to Russia to confront imprisonment”.
The drug dealer from Elmesthorpe, Leicestershire had discussed another potential attack in the Czech Republic.
In a search of his home, 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 court heard he was a participant in multiple pro-Russian propaganda channels and was motivated by “plain and severe avarice”.
“This legal matter concerns the attempts by the Russian government to acquire harmful worldwide sway using social media to enlist saboteurs far from the Russian capital.”
She determined the arson attack had a “terrorist connection” irrespective of if the individuals responsible were aware of it. The Wagner group is proscribed by the UK government as a terrorist group.
