The ringleader behind a £1m arson attack and a plot to kidnap a Russian billionaire dissident was “groomed” by a chatbot linked to the Wagner mercenary group, the Old Bailey has heard.
Dylan Earl, 21, from Elmesthorpe, Leicestershire, admitted orchestrating the blaze at an industrial estate in Leyton, East London, on 20 March 2024. The fire caused extensive damage, including to Starlink satellite equipment intended for Ukraine.
Earl, a builder and part-time drug dealer who lived with his parents, also instructed others to torch a luxury restaurant and wine dealership in Mayfair and to kidnap billionaire Evgeny Chichvarkin, the court heard.
Defence barrister Paul Hynes KC told the sentencing hearing that Earl had been manipulated by a Russian-language chatbot called PrivetBot on the encrypted app Telegram — allegedly operated by Wagner agents.
“The Russians were ‘trash fishing’ online, and Earl was easy meat,” Mr Hynes said. “He was a lonely, isolated young man who spent long hours in his bedroom taking drugs and playing online games.”
Mr Hynes said that while Earl was not a victim, his vulnerabilities were exploited by those behind PrivetBot, which acted as a proxy for the Russian Federation.
In April 2024, PrivetBot messaged Earl, telling him: “It’s a great happiness that you have realised so early that you are a WARRIOR. We need your connections and your capabilities.”
Earl’s deleted replies reportedly showed his eagerness to impress. “If you need connections with IRA, I can sort it. Murderers, kidnappers, soldiers, drug dealers—I can sort it all,” he wrote, despite never leaving his bedroom or meeting anyone involved.
Mr Hynes described Earl as “a sad individual detached from reality, desperate for praise and significance.”
Earl and five other men are being sentenced for their roles in the Wagner-ordered arson plot, with sentencing expected to conclude on Friday.
The Kremlin has denied any involvement in acts of sabotage in the UK. Photo by Central Criminal Court, Old Bailey by Stephen Richards, Wikimedia commons.