The ringleader of an arson attack on Ukraine-linked businesses in London last year discussed kidnapping Nikolay Storonsky, the co-founder of finance app Revolut, a British court heard on Thursday.
On the day he was arrested in April 2024, Dylan Earl communicated on Telegram with someone prosecutors said was a Wagner group handler known as "Lucky Strike", about the kidnap and extortion of Revolut boss Nikolay Storonsky. The Russian-born billionaire, who moved to the UAE about a year ago, is the world’s 209th-richest person with a net worth of about $14 billion, according to a Bloomberg index.
"Can you catch somebody and get him to transfer money to your accounts?" Lucky Strike wrote on Telegram before attaching the Wikipedia entry for Mr Storonsky, who co-founded the payments company in 2015.
"He is a billionaire so he will have a lot of security and systems to protect unauthorised payments," Earl replied. "But I will research more into this and see if it's possible."
Earl, 21, has already admitted aggravated arson over the blaze in 2024 which targeted companies delivering satellite equipment from Elon Musk's Starlink to Ukraine. It took eight crews, with 60 firefighters, to wrest control of the blaze, which caused about £1 million ($1.3 million) of damage.
Earl and five others are due to be sentenced on Friday after being convicted for their part in a plot to burn down warehouses on an industrial estate in east London on behalf of Russia's Wagner mercenary group.
The prosecution outlined the other incidents to the court at London's Old Bailey on Thursday to build its case for a long sentence for the arson attack and Earl's acknowledged part in another kidnap conspiracy, targeting Evgeny Chichvarkin, the wealthy owner of a restaurant and a high-profile critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin. He had also sought to pay a serving British soldier for intelligence, prosecutors said.
"Overall, Earl's actions constitute a sustained campaign of terrorism and sabotage on UK soil, carried out in support of a foreign power – the Russian Federation – and its war of aggression against Ukraine," prosecutor Duncan Penny said. He asserted Earl was well aware what he was doing was an “act of terrorism”.
Earl's lawyer Paul Hynes told the court his client was a "sad individual", a "Walter Mitty" character who had been groomed by "sophisticated" Wagner handlers.
He described Earl as an “easy puppet in the hands of others”, who sought “praise, importance and significance” and saw the world through the “prism of online gaming”.
Mr Hynes said: “He was for lengthy periods alone in his bedroom at his parents’ house and led a minimalistic existence taking drugs and gaming online.
“This is not a John le Carre novel. But nevertheless those who would wish the UK and other countries ill will continue to try to latch on to people like Mr Earl.”
While he accepted Earl had acted for a foreign power “with some enthusiasm” and put others in harm’s way, he said there was no evidence of an “underlying ideology” associated with “orthodox terrorism”.
The Kremlin has denied the accusations and its embassy in London has rejected any part in the warehouse fires.
Britain has repeatedly accused Moscow of orchestrating malign activity in Britain, with a group of Bulgarians convicted in March of spying on behalf of Russian intelligence.
On Thursday, police said they had arrested three men suspected of assisting Russia's intelligence service and warned the public against what it said was a mounting campaign by foreign intelligence services to recruit proxies in Britain.
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Spare
Profile
Company name: Spare
Started: March 2018
Co-founders: Dalal Alrayes and Saurabh Shah
Based: UAE
Sector: FinTech
Investment: Own savings. Going for first round of fund-raising in March 2019
Du Plessis plans his retirement
South Africa captain Faf du Plessis said on Friday the Twenty20 World Cup in Australia in two years' time will be his last.
Du Plessis, 34, who has led his country in two World T20 campaigns, in 2014 and 2016, is keen to play a third but will then step aside.
"The T20 World Cup in 2020 is something I'm really looking forward to. I think right now that will probably be the last tournament for me," he said in Brisbane ahead of a one-off T20 against Australia on Saturday.
Panipat
Director Ashutosh Gowariker
Produced Ashutosh Gowariker, Rohit Shelatkar, Reliance Entertainment
Cast Arjun Kapoor, Sanjay Dutt, Kriti Sanon, Mohnish Behl, Padmini Kolhapure, Zeenat Aman
Rating 3 /5 stars
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
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- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
The Vile
Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah
Director: Majid Al Ansari
Rating: 4/5
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
England Test squad
Ben Stokes (captain), Joe Root, James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Foakes, Jack Leach, Alex Lees, Craig Overton, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
World ranking (at month’s end)
Jan - 257
Feb - 198
Mar - 159
Apr - 161
May - 159
Jun – 162
Currently: 88
Year-end rank since turning pro
2016 - 279
2015 - 185
2014 - 143
2013 - 63
2012 - 384
2011 - 883
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MWTC info
Tickets to the MWTC range from Dh100 and can be purchased from www.ticketmaster.ae or by calling 800 86 823 from within the UAE or 971 4 366 2289 from outside the country and all Virgin Megastores. Fans looking to attend all three days of the MWTC can avail of a special 20 percent discount on ticket prices.
The specs: 2018 Mazda CX-5
Price, base / as tested: Dh89,000 / Dh130,000
Engine: 2.5-litre four-cylinder
Power: 188hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 251Nm @ 4,000rpm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.1L / 100km
