A fire at the Leyton site on March 20, 2024 caused £1.3 million in damage.
The leader of the group, 21-year-old Dylan Earl from Leicestershire, recruited via Telegram by representatives of the private military company Wagner (recognized as a terrorist organization in the world), received 17 years in prison and another six years of supervised release. It is noted that he also planned the kidnapping of Russian oppositionist Yevgeny Chichvarkin.
His accomplice, 24-year-old Jake Reeves from Croydon, helped gather the perpetrators. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison and one year of additional supervision. Both were the first to be convicted under the new National Security Act of 2023, aimed at combating hostile foreign activities.
Four more participants received sentences ranging from seven to nine years:
- Nii Mensah (23) – broadcast the attack, 9 years;
- Ashton Evans (20) – failed to report the impending kidnapping, also convicted of drug possession, 9 years;
- Jakeem Rose (23) – set fire to a building, 8 years and 10 months;
- Ugnii Asmena (21) – ensured escape by car, 7 years.
All also received a year of additional supervision.
According to the investigation, Earl contacted the “curator” from Wagner and declared his readiness to carry out tasks, the first of which was the arson of a warehouse from where humanitarian aid was sent to Ukraine, including Starlink terminals. Earl was supposed to receive £9,000 for the task, but received less because he acted without the approval of his supervisor.
After the arson, Earl and Reeves planned an attack on the restaurant and the kidnapping of Chichvarkin, but Earl was detained in Leicestershire. They found a video of the arson on his phone, and at home they found a Russian flag, more than £20,000 in cash, cocaine worth £34,000 and a crypto account with £58,000.
The judge described the group's actions as “a planned campaign of terrorism and sabotage in the interests of Russia.”
Security Minister Dan Jarvis stressed that the verdicts demonstrate London's determination to resist hostile actions by foreign countries. “Those who work for Russia are expendable. These criminals have already learned this from their own experience,” he said.
Context
In March 2024, warehouses burned in an industrial area in the east of the British capital. They belonged to the Oddisey company, which delivered humanitarian supplies to Ukraine, including Starlink satellite equipment. On June 4, 2025, it became known that the arsonists were sent to trial.
