A group of six men have been jailed over a Russian mercenary group-ordered arson attack at a London warehouse providing aid to Ukraine.
The Wagner Group, a private military organisation that acts on behalf of the Russian state, was behind the attack.
It is believed the damage caused by the group totals around £1million.
Dylan Earl, Jake Reeves and four others were sentenced for espionage, terrorism offences and arson at the Old Bailey.
Earl admitted planning the arson attack on industrial units in Leyton, East London, while working for the Wagner Group, a proscribed terror group in the UK.
The 21-year-old was jailed for a total of 23 years, with 17 of them being spent in prison and six on extended licence.
Reeves has been sentenced to 12 years, with a further year on licence.
The court was told that Earl and Reeves targeted the site because it was being used to supply humanitarian aid and StarLink satellite equipment to Ukraine.
The damage from the attack is believed to be worth £1million
|
PA
He recruited Reeves to help plot the arson attack.
Reeves then recruited his friend Nii Kojo Mensh to carry out the attack.
Jakeem Rose was also brought in for the attack, as well as Ugnius Asmena.
It took eight fire crews and 60 firefighters to tackle the fire and get it under control.
The gang plotted a further arson attack on a restaurant and wine shop in Mayfair, central London.
They planned to kidnap wealthy Russian dissident Evgeny Chichvarkin in the attack.
Sentencing, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb said the arson attack was part of a “planned campaign of terrorism and sabotage”, adding: “This case is about the efforts of the Russian Federation to gain pernicious global influence using social media to enlist saboteurs vast distances from Moscow.”
The judge said the attack was in connection with a warehouse being hit in Spain 10 days later, and Earl was discussing another potential attack in the Czech Republic.
Some 60 firefighters were called to the scene
|
PA
She concluded that the attack had a “terrorist connection”, regardless of what the attackers said.
Paul Hynes KC, said in defence for Earl, that he was “easy meat for the very sophisticated operatives of the Wagner Group acting as proxies for the Russian Federation”.
He called Earl an “easy puppet in the hands of others” who wanted “praise, importance and significance”.
Ashton Evans, who assisted Earl in supplying drugs, was also charged as part of the investigation.
Social media messages allegedly indicated that he knew about both the arson attack and the planned offences in Mayfair.
