🔗 Share this article

Six Britons acting for the Wagner mercenary group linked to Russia have been handed jail terms for setting fire to a London-based storage unit that was storing relief supplies intended for Ukraine.

Sentencing and Roles

Sentencing the men, the judge at the central criminal court stated that they had planned a “series of terrorist and sabotage acts” to benefit the Russian state.

Dylan Earl received a 17-year prison sentence with an additional six years on extended licence due to his “leading role”. Jake Reeves, a resident of Croydon, South London, was sentenced to twelve years in prison with an additional year on extended licence. Their admitted crimes made them the initial persons to be convicted under the National Security Act 2023.

Jakeem Rose, aged 23, also a Croydon resident, was sentenced to eight years and 10 months. Nii Mensah, 23, from Thornton Heath, south London, 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 aggravated arson and received a further year on supervised release by the court.

Ashton Evans, a 20-year-old individual involved in drug trafficking from Newport in Gwent, was jailed for nine years imprisonment plus a further year on extended licence after being convicted of failing to disclose details regarding acts of terrorism connected to a separate scheme in the Mayfair area.

Details of the Attack

The deliberate fire on a warehouse in Leyton, east London endangered sixty fire service personnel 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 group, acting on behalf of the Russian government.

The group targeted the warehouse 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 probe.

Evidence and Further Plans

When Earl was taken into custody, police analysis of his mobile phone revealed he had videos of the storage facility blaze being started and was in contact with the Wagner group on Telegram, via an account with the handles ‘Privet Bot’ and ‘Lucky Strike’.

Some of the messages indicated that reconnaissance for additional operations, involving arson attacks at a dining establishment and wine shop in Mayfair owned by the Russian dissident Evgeny Chichvarkin had already been carried out. The use of explosives to damage buildings was also discussed.

Investigators discovered that Earl was also considering the potential abduction of the dissident Chichvarkin and “sending him back to Russia to face prison”.

The individual involved in narcotics from Elmesthorpe, Leicestershire had discussed an additional planned incident in the Czech nation.

In a search of his home, police found a Russian flag, more than £20,000 in cash and cocaine hydrochloride with a market value of approximately thirty-four thousand pounds.

Driving Factors and Court Comments

The proceedings revealed he was a participant in multiple pro-Russian propaganda channels and was motivated by “simple and ugly greed”.

“This legal matter concerns the attempts by the Russian government to acquire harmful worldwide sway using online platforms to enlist saboteurs vast distances from Moscow.”

She found the fire incident had a “terrorist connection” regardless of whether the perpetrators knew it. The Wagner organization is banned by the UK government as a terrorist group.