LONDON - Even after he set fire to Sir Keir Starmer's house, Roman Lavrynovych - convicted on Monday of conspiring to commit arson - seemed to know as much about the prime minister as a bullet knows about its target. His anonymous handler, known by the initials EL, gave a clue in a message: "Look, you attacked the home of a very high-ranking person in Britain. I'll send you money, you need to leave the city." It was too late: Lavrynovych was arrested within hours. The 22-year-old Ukrainian builder had been weaponised to target the UK's head of government. But by who?
Sindh IGP meets Hindu Panchayat delegation, discusses minority community concerns. Our investigation has found the arson attack was just one part of an extensive campaign of sabotage, provocation and lies leading all the way to the Russian state. The handler EL, who directed Lavrynovych, offered Russian citizenship in return for other attacks and glorified President Vladimir Putin, messages the BBC has uncovered show. We have identified evidence suggesting that EL is a young Russian diplomat, schooled in information warfare by spies and propagandists, who is close to the highest levels of power in Moscow. His name is Evgeny Lyukshin. He is 23 and the son of a senior official.
Russian operatives ran their sabotage and provocation campaign remotely through social media and the messaging app Telegram, we found, creating fake online far-right and Muslim groups, which were used to organise acts of vandalism in the UK and stir up division and fear. Accounts based in Russia posted lies about the motive for the arson attacks targeting Starmer, which were spread by figures such as far-right anti-Islam activist Tommy Robinson. The Russian embassy said: "We reject any attempt to associate Russia or its foreign ministry with unlawful activities." It said that Russia poses "no threat to the United Kingdom or its people and harbours no aggressive intentions towards Britain". Lyukshin did not respond to our questions, but hours after contacting him, a propaganda channel we had challenged him on disappeared.
'Work for the glory of the nation'
Stakeholders meet to fast-track feasibility study for proposed Greenfield Int'l Airport. Ukrainian national Lavrynovych, and Ukrainian-born Romanian national Stanislav Carpiuc, 27, have now been convicted at the Old Bailey of conspiring to target property and a car connected to the UK prime minister. A third man, Petro Pochynok, 35, was found not guilty of conspiracy to commit arson. The first fire last year occurred when a Toyota, previously owned by the prime minister, was set ablaze in north London. There were two more arson attacks: one at the entrance to flats where Sir Keir used to live and another at the entrance to his house, which had been rented to his sister-in-law after his move to No 10.
CM reviews wheat procurement, orders action against hoarding, strict stock controls. But the trial of the three men was strange, mainly because the true author of the drama was never revealed. The case focused strictly on a financial motive. The identity, connections and motives of the anonymous handler who offered Lavrynovych money for the attacks were deliberately avoided. In court, the handler was referred to as "EL Money", which is how he was saved in Lavrynovych's phone, but on the Telegram messaging app he simply used the initials "EL". This app was where EL recruited Lavrynovych, finding him in a group for Ukrainians in London seeking work.
Sindh CM reviews Muharram arrangements, orders foolproof security, uninterrupted civic services. From that innocuous initial connection, Lavrynovych was tasked with actions of escalating criminality, from plastering posters, to graffiti, to arson. Lavrynovych knew he was doing wrong but carried on anyway, hoping to earn a payday. In court, there were only a limited number of messages from EL, all of them sent to Lavrynovych and Carpiuc, which showed him writing in formal Russian and far less proficient Ukrainian. But we were able to uncover EL's wider activities using open-source tools. Messages from the EL account in various Telegram channels show him glorifying Putin and Russia, attacking the Ukrainian people and promoting Russian narratives.
Britain announces sweeping social media ban for under-16s. "It is obvious that Putin is the leader of the white race," he posted in one chat. EL posted in jobs groups for Ukrainians, asking for "painters to do graffiti" in London - but in other chat groups he used deeply offensive Russian terms for Ukrainian people. EL incited attacks on conscription centres in Ukraine, which has been at war since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. He said that people there who are in favour of the "white Slavic race" should join the "real Third Rome", a reference to the belief that Russia is the successor to the Roman Empire. "Work for the glory of the nation to spite your enemies," EL added, before offering $1,000 (£749) and Russian citizenship as a reward for arson attacks. EL also gave hints about his identity, offering Russians in other Telegram groups access to documents from Nato and the CIA. "My father leaks part of it to me, it was not for nothing that he went to Europe," he said.
