Two men found guilty over Starmer-linked arson attacks

Two men found guilty over Starmer-linked arson attacks 7 minutes ago Share Save Add as preferred on Google Daniel De Simone Investigations correspondent BBC Two men have been found guilty of conspiring to carry out arson attacks on property and a car connected to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. Ukrainian national Roman Lavrynovych, 22, and Ukrainian-born Romanian national Stanislav Carpiuc, 27, were convicted by an Old Bailey jury. In May 2025, a Toyota once owned by Sir Keir was set alight in a street in north London. Days later two homes were set ablaze, including one rented out to the prime minister's sister-in-law, which he still owned. The prosecution told the court Lavrynovych carried out the arson attacks after being recruited online by Russian-speaking Telegram user "El Money" who promised him payment. A third man, Petro Pochynok, 35, was found not guilty of conspiracy to commit arson. All three, who live in London, had denied conspiring together and "with others" to damage property by fire between 1 April and 13 May 2025. On 8 May 2025, a car previously owned by the prime minister was found on fire on a street he previously lived on in Kentish Town. Three days later, a fire was discovered at flats linked to Sir Keir in nearby Islington. He had lived there years before. On 12 May 2025, a fire was discovered at the entrance to Sir Keir's Kentish Town home, which was being rented out to his sister-in-law. She was inside with her family when the property was set alight by Lavrynovych. This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version. You can receive Breaking News on a smartphone or tablet via the BBC News App . You can also follow @BBCBreaking on X to get the latest alerts.