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Six Britons working on behalf of the Wagner mercenary group linked to Russia have been handed jail terms for setting fire to a London-based storage unit that was holding humanitarian aid intended for Ukraine.

Sentencing and Roles

While delivering the sentences, the presiding judge at the central criminal court stated 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 extended licence due to his “leading role”. Jake Reeves, a resident of Croydon, South London, was given 12 years in prison with one year on extended licence. The offences they admitted resulted in them being the initial persons 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, from Thornton Heath, south London, was sentenced to nine years and Ugnius Asmena, 21, who was without a fixed address, was handed seven years. These three individuals were each convicted of serious fire-setting and given a further year on supervised release by the judge.

Ashton Evans, a 20-year-old drug dealer from Newport in Gwent, was sentenced to nine years imprisonment plus a further year on supervised release after being found guilty of failing to disclose information about acts of terrorism connected to another plot in the Mayfair area.

Details of the Attack

The arson attack on a warehouse in Leyton, east London put 60 firefighters at risk and resulted in one million pounds worth of destruction 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 mercenary organization, acting on behalf of the Russian Federation.

The individuals involved selected the storage facility because it was being utilized for providing emergency relief and satellite communication gear to Ukraine.

When the same Ukrainian company was subjected to an intentional fire ten days afterward in the Spanish capital, investigators from the Metropolitan Police's anti-terror unit took over the investigation.

Proof and Additional Schemes

When Earl was arrested, law enforcement examination of his cellphone revealed he had recordings of the storage facility blaze being started and was in contact with the Wagner organization on the Telegram messaging app, via an account with the usernames ‘Privet Bot account’ and ‘Lucky Strike’.

Some of the messages indicated that preliminary surveillance for additional operations, involving arson attacks at a restaurant and wine store in Mayfair belonging to the Russian opposition figure 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 in Leicestershire had discussed an additional planned incident in the Czech Republic.

In a residence inspection, police located a Russian flag, more than £20,000 in cash and cocaine with a market 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 driven by “simple and ugly greed”.

“This case is about the attempts by the Russian government to gain pernicious global influence using online platforms to recruit disruptors vast distances from Moscow.”

She found the arson attack had a “terrorist connection” irrespective of if the individuals responsible were aware of it. The Wagner organization is banned by the British authorities as a terrorist group.