The three British men were recruited via Telegram to carry out “missions” on behalf of the Wagner Group in the UK. The warehouse held aid for Ukraine, and the attack caused over £1 million in damage.
by Nick Pehlman | July 8, 2025, KYIV POST
A man is seen in front of a flag of Wagner group mounted on top of an old tank exhibited at the Leninist Komsomol park in Donetsk, Russian-controlled Ukraine, on October 1, 2023, to mark 40 days since the death of Wagner private mercenary group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin as per Orthodox tradition. Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner mercenary group, died with nine other people when a plane flying from Moscow to Saint Petersburg crashed on August 23. (Photo by STRINGER / AFP)
Three British men were convicted of “aggravated arson with the intent to endanger life” for their March 20, 2024 arson attack on an east London warehouse holding humanitarian aid and Starlink equipment for Ukraine.
The verdict came on Tuesday at London’s Old Bailey courthouse and the men were apparently acting on behalf of the Wagner Group, a private mercenary group that works closely with the Kremlin.
The men were named as Jakeem Rose, 23, Ugnisius Asmena, 20, and Nii Mensah, 23 according to the BBC.
The men reportedly live-streamed the attack, where they poured gasoline on the door of the warehouse, costing over £1 million in damage. The men were captured on CCTV and Rose reportedly left a knife at the scene containing his DNA.
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The BBC reported that during the trial, the court heard that Earl had told his Wagner group handler, whom he had met through Telegram, that he was keen to carry out a series of “missions”, of which the warehouse fire was only the first.
Further plots were discovered, involving arson attacks on a restaurant and wine shop in Mayfair, west London and to kidnap its owner, a multi-millionaire and Russian dissident Evgeny Chichvarkin.
Last month, during the trial, AFP quoted Dominic Murphy, head of the Metropolitan Police in London‘s Counter Terrorism Command, who said in November 2024, that it was “a highly significant moment and investigation for us”.
Three British men were convicted of “aggravated arson with the intent to endanger life” for their March 20, 2024 arson attack on an east London warehouse holding humanitarian aid and Starlink equipment for Ukraine.
The verdict came on Tuesday at London’s Old Bailey courthouse and the men were apparently acting on behalf of the Wagner Group, a private mercenary group that works closely with the Kremlin.
The men were named as Jakeem Rose, 23, Ugnisius Asmena, 20, and Nii Mensah, 23 according to the BBC.
The men reportedly live-streamed the attack, where they poured gasoline on the door of the warehouse, costing over £1 million in damage. The men were captured on CCTV and Rose reportedly left a knife at the scene containing his DNA.
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The BBC reported that during the trial, the court heard that Earl had told his Wagner group handler, whom he had met through Telegram, that he was keen to carry out a series of “missions”, of which the warehouse fire was only the first.
Further plots were discovered, involving arson attacks on a restaurant and wine shop in Mayfair, west London and to kidnap its owner, a multi-millionaire and Russian dissident Evgeny Chichvarkin.
Last month, during the trial, AFP quoted Dominic Murphy, head of the Metropolitan Police in London‘s Counter Terrorism Command, who said in November 2024, that it was “a highly significant moment and investigation for us”.
The meeting on July 10 will come as US-led peace talks on ending the more than three-year-old war against Ukraine have stalled, with the deployment of a “reassurance force” returning to the agenda.
“Not only are the charges... extremely serious, but it is also the first time that we have arrested, and now charged, anyone using the powers and legislation brought in under the National Security Act.”
In 2023, the United Kingdom passed the National Security Act to address espionage, sabotage, and persons working for foreign powers.
Last year, MI6 Chief Richard Moore warned of the threat posed by Wagner in Europe.
“We have recently uncovered a staggeringly reckless campaign of Russian sabotage in Europe, even as Putin and his acolytes resort to nuclear saber-rattling to sow fear about the consequences of aiding Ukraine and challenge Western resolve,” Moore said during a speech in Paris last year.
Nick Pehlman is a journalist at Kyiv Post based in New York City. He is also an adjunct assistant Professor of Political Science at the City University of New York and New York University. He previously worked for prosecutor's offices in New York City and for the US Department of Justice. He is an independent researcher with expertise on law enforcement reform in Ukraine and the United States, and worked on the reform of the National Police of Ukraine in 2016 for the US Department of Justice.
“Not only are the charges... extremely serious, but it is also the first time that we have arrested, and now charged, anyone using the powers and legislation brought in under the National Security Act.”
In 2023, the United Kingdom passed the National Security Act to address espionage, sabotage, and persons working for foreign powers.
Last year, MI6 Chief Richard Moore warned of the threat posed by Wagner in Europe.
“We have recently uncovered a staggeringly reckless campaign of Russian sabotage in Europe, even as Putin and his acolytes resort to nuclear saber-rattling to sow fear about the consequences of aiding Ukraine and challenge Western resolve,” Moore said during a speech in Paris last year.
Nick Pehlman is a journalist at Kyiv Post based in New York City. He is also an adjunct assistant Professor of Political Science at the City University of New York and New York University. He previously worked for prosecutor's offices in New York City and for the US Department of Justice. He is an independent researcher with expertise on law enforcement reform in Ukraine and the United States, and worked on the reform of the National Police of Ukraine in 2016 for the US Department of Justice.
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