Six Britons acting for the Wagner mercenary group linked to Russia have been handed jail terms for setting fire to a London-based warehouse that was holding relief supplies intended for Ukraine.
Sentencing and Roles
Sentencing the men, the judge at the central criminal court remarked that they had orchestrated a “series of terrorist and sabotage acts” in the interests of the Russian government.
Dylan Earl received a seventeen-year jail term with an additional six years on supervised release due to his “primary involvement”. Jake Reeves, from Croydon in south London, was sentenced to 12 years in prison with an additional year on supervised release. The offences they admitted resulted in them being the first individuals to be convicted under the 2023 National Security Act.
Jakeem Rose, aged 23, also from Croydon, was sentenced to a term of eight years and ten months. Nii Mensah, a Thornton Heath, South London local, was sentenced to nine years imprisonment and Ugnius Asmena, 21, who was without a fixed address, was handed seven years in prison. These three individuals were each convicted of serious fire-setting and given a additional year on supervised release by the judge.
Ashton Evans, a 20-year-old drug dealer from Newport in Gwent, was jailed for nine years imprisonment with an extra year on extended licence 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 warehouse in Leyton, east London endangered sixty fire service personnel and caused £1m in damage in March last year.
The proceedings revealed that the 21-year-old Earl and the 24-year-old Reeves did not leave their bedrooms while coordinating the incident for the Wagner mercenary organization, acting on behalf of the Russian government.
The individuals involved 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 intentional fire 10 days later in the Spanish capital, investigators from the Metropolitan Police's anti-terror unit assumed control of the investigation.
Proof and Additional Schemes
When Earl was arrested, law enforcement examination of his cellphone revealed he had videos of the storage facility blaze being initiated and was in communication with the Wagner group on Telegram, via an account with the usernames ‘Privet Bot account’ and ‘Lucky Strike’.
Some of the messages indicated that preliminary surveillance for further “missions”, involving arson attacks at a restaurant and wine store 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 Chichvarkin and “exiling him back to Russia to face prison”.
The drug dealer from Elmesthorpe, Leicestershire had talked about another potential attack in the Czech Republic.
In a search of his home, police located a Russian flag, over twenty thousand pounds in currency and cocaine with a street value of approximately thirty-four thousand pounds.
Driving Factors and Court Comments
The court heard he was a member of multiple channels promoting Russian propaganda and was motivated by “plain and severe avarice”.
“This legal matter concerns the efforts of the Russian Federation to acquire harmful worldwide sway using online platforms to enlist saboteurs far from the Russian capital.”
She determined the fire incident had a “link to terrorism” regardless of whether the individuals responsible knew it. The Wagner organization is banned by the UK government as a terrorist group.
