Journalist at HLN
Source: Belga, BBC
Last May, a fire was set at two homes where Starmer had lived and a car that had once belonged to him. 22-year-old Ukrainian Roman Lavrynovych and 27-year-old Stanislav Carpiuc (a Ukrainian-born Romanian) were found guilty by a jury in a London court on Monday.
Lavrynovych is said to have received an order via Telegram from someone using the initials EL. It remained unclear during the trial who that was, but according to the BBC it is most likely Evgeny Lyukshin (23).
The diplomat is said to have been trained in spreading disinformation through the creation of fake right-wing extremist and Islamist online groups, which were used to organize vandalism in the UK and sow division and fear. The 23-year-old is also said to have access to high political circles in Moscow.
The BBC reports, citing sources, that British and Ukrainian authorities also believe Russia was behind the arsons.
The Russian embassy denies any involvement: “We reject any attempt to link Russia or its Foreign Ministry with unlawful activities,” it said in a statement. The message states that Russia “does not pose a threat to the United Kingdom or its people and has no aggressive intentions against Britain.”