A Ukrainian man accused of setting fire to properties linked to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer told police he felt “threatened” by an anonymous contact “El Money” who allegedly ordered the arson attacks.
Roman Lavrynovych, 22, allegedly plotted to set light to a car and two houses in north London last May on the promise of cryptocurrency by the shadowy Russian-speaking Telegram user.
The targets included a Toyota Rav4 car which once belonged to the Prime Minister and a house in Islington managed by a company of which Sir Keir had once been a director and shareholder.
A second house set alight was owned by the Prime Minister and occupied by his sister-in-law, jurors have heard.
On Thursday, the Old Bailey trial heard police raided Lavrynovych’s home in Sydenham, south-east London, early last May 13.
Officers broke down his door, found the defendant in bed and arrested him.
During a search, a pair of trainers, a petrol can and a bottle of white spirit were seized and found to have the defendant’s DNA on them, the court heard.
In a police interview, he denied being involved in the fires, claiming he was at home on the dates of the first two incidents and visiting his friend Petro in Camden on the third.
He maintained his story after being shown data from his phone tying him to the locations.
At the end of the interview, an officer asked if someone had asked him to set the fires.
Lavrynovych said: “I think you need to speak to a different person.
Asked who, he said: “I don’t know, I never saw this person.”
The officer asked: “Are you saying someone’s asked you to set fire to these three addresses?”
Lavrynovych allegedly replied: “Yes.”
In a later prepared statement, he claimed the contact “El” had only offered him £1,500 to check for CCTV.
He said: “He asked me to go to the addresses and to check for CCTV. He mentioned two addresses and offered £1,500 for me to check both.
“He sent me the instructions on the same day that I had to go and instructed me that I go at night.
“He said that once done, he would pay me and I trusted him. I needed the money. He has not paid me though.
“He told me to send a message when I had checked the area and so I sent him a message after 15 minutes to say I had checked and that there was no CCTV.”
He went on: “I felt threatened. He threatened me by saying that I would have to do the job as he knew where I lived. I was scared as my grandmother lives at the same address and I could not be sure that he would not do anything.”
He insisted he “did not commit arson at any address” and he did not know who had.
He told police “El” offered to send money by PayPal or crypto but he did not have a crypto account and he was never paid.
In a further interview, he claimed he might have spilled white spirit on his Fila trainers while decorating.
On May 15, Lavrynovych was charged with arson with intent to endanger life.
Two days later, co-defendant Romanian Stanislav Carpiuc, 27, was stopped at Luton Airport in the departure lounge where he was due to board a flight to Romania. He made no comment in interviews.
Last May 19, Ukrainian Petro Pochynok, 35, was detained in Chelsea, west London, and he too made no comment in police interviews.
Duncan Atkinson KC told jurors: “The prosecution say that the evidence proves that all three defendants agreed to set fires in a residential area, intending that fires should be set and realising that property might be destroyed or damaged by the fire and that the life of another might be endangered by the fire.”
Lavrynovych, Carpiuc, from Romford, east London, and Pochynok, of Islington, north London, have pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to damage property by fire between April 1 and May 13 last year.
Lavrynovych also denied damaging two properties by fire with intent to endanger life or being reckless as to whether life was endangered on May 11 and 12 last year.
The Old Bailey trial continues.
