ARSON ATTACKS ON STARMER-INKED PROPERTIES: THE RUSSIAN-SPEAKING MASTERMIND UNMASKED

Judith Alexander, sister-in-law to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, was in bed on her phone around 1am when she heard two loud bangs. It sounded like wheelie bins being thrown at the door, but it wasn’t that simple. Smoke and an orange glow soon filled her view. “We could see the smoke getting thicker and heading upstairs,” Alexander told the court, her statement read aloud during the trial at the Old Bailey in London. “My daughter’s room was right above the fire. If I hadn’t woken up, who knows what might have happened.” These arson attacks were one of three that occurred in May 2025, targeting properties linked to Keir Starmer. The incidents included a house in north London where Starmer once lived and a car he had sold to a neighbor. Two men with Ukrainian ties, Roman Lavrynovych (22) and Stanislav Carpiuc (27), were found guilty of conspiring to damage property after a lengthy trial. Their co-defendant, Petro Pochynok (35), was cleared. Lavrynovych was also convicted of damaging two properties by fire, being reckless as to whether life was endangered. At the center of the case was a Russian-speaking Telegram contact known as “El Money,” who communicated with Lavrynovych in Russian and orchestrated the attacks. El Money promised payment in cryptocurrency for the fires. “Who is this shadowy figure? What do we know about him? Nothing,” James Scobie KC, representing Lavrynovych, told the court. He suggested Russia might have an interest in undermining the UK’s support for Ukraine. The prosecution described El Money as seeking to destabilize society but stressed that determining his identity or motivations was beyond the jury’s scope. Lavrynovych claimed he was recruited through a Telegram jobs group, instructed by El Money, and felt threatened. He said El Money knew where he lived and threatened him if he didn’t comply. The attacks included setting fire to Starmer’s former car, a property in north London where Starmer once managed, and the home where his sister-in-law now lives. Lavrynovych told the court that El Money wanted the arson to be seen on the news. “He said it was important for the press to cover it,” Lavrynovych testified through a translator. The mysterious El Money remains at large, but the conviction of Lavrynovych and Carpiuc marks a significant victory in this chilling case.