Six Britons working on behalf of Russia’s Wagner group have been sentenced to prison for igniting a London-based storage unit that was storing humanitarian aid destined for Ukraine.
Sentencing and Roles
While delivering the sentences, the presiding judge at the Old Bailey remarked that they had planned a “campaign of terrorism and sabotage” in the interests of the Russian government.
The individual named Dylan Earl was given a seventeen-year prison sentence with an additional six years on supervised release due to his “primary involvement”. Another defendant, Jake Reeves, a resident of Croydon, South London, was given twelve years in prison with one year on extended licence. The offences they admitted made them the first individuals to be convicted under the National Security Act 2023.
Jakeem Rose, aged 23, also a Croydon resident, was jailed for eight years and 10 months. Nii Mensah, 23, from Thornton Heath, south London, was given nine years and Ugnius Asmena, who was without a fixed address, was handed seven years. These three individuals were each convicted of aggravated arson and given a further year on supervised release by the court.
Ashton Evans, a 20-year-old individual involved in drug trafficking hailing from Newport, Gwent, was jailed for nine years imprisonment plus a further year on supervised release after being convicted of withholding details regarding terrorist acts connected to another plot in the Mayfair area.
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 Earl, 21 and Reeves, 24 did not leave their bedrooms while organising the attack for the Wagner mercenary organization, acting on behalf of the Russian government.
The group targeted the storage facility because it was being utilized for providing humanitarian aid and StarLink satellite equipment to Ukraine.
When the same Ukrainian company was subjected to an arson attack 10 days later in Madrid, 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 uncovered he had videos of the storage facility blaze being initiated and was in communication with the Wagner group on the Telegram messaging app, via an user profile with the usernames ‘Privet Bot’ and ‘Lucky Strike’.
Some of the messages indicated that reconnaissance for additional operations, involving fire-related incidents at a dining establishment and wine shop in Mayfair owned by the Russian opposition figure Evgeny Chichvarkin had already taken place. The employment of explosive devices 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 confront imprisonment”.
The drug dealer from Elmesthorpe in Leicestershire had talked about another potential attack in the Czech Republic.
In a residence inspection, police located a flag of Russia, more than £20,000 in cash and cocaine with a market value of about £34,000.
Driving Factors and Court Comments
The proceedings revealed he was a participant in numerous pro-Russian propaganda channels and was driven by “simple and ugly greed”.
“This legal matter concerns the efforts of the Russian Federation to acquire harmful worldwide sway using social media to recruit disruptors vast distances from Moscow.”
She found the arson attack had a “terrorist connection” regardless of whether the individuals responsible were aware of it. The Wagner organization is banned by the British authorities as a terrorist organisation.
