Telegram questioned by Ofcom after arsonist who targeted Starmer-linked properties recruited on app

Ofcom seeks answers

Ofcom has contacted Telegram for clarification after court evidence and sentencing reports linked the messaging app to the recruitment and direction of arsonists in a case involving properties connected to Keir Starmer.

The regulator is asking how Telegram detects and prevents illegal incitement on its platform, according to reporting on the case. The contact adds fresh scrutiny to the app under the UK’s Online Safety Act, which places duties on services used in Britain to address illegal content and harmful activity.

Sentences handed down

The development came on June 19, 2026, when two men were sentenced for their roles in the arson plot. Roman Lavrynovych, 22, was sentenced to seven years in prison after being convicted of conspiring to commit arson. Stanislav Carpiuc, 27, received a two-year sentence.

AP reported the sentences, while the Guardian provided further detail on the Telegram link and Ofcom’s inquiry. The timing means the regulator’s contact followed the courtroom record becoming public in the same news cycle.

How the attacks unfolded

The arson attacks took place in May 2025. They included a Toyota once owned by Starmer, a fire at a property in north London linked to him on May 11, 2025, and a fire at his former home in Kentish Town on May 12, 2025.

The case has been reported as politically sensitive because the targets were tied to the prime minister. That makes the online recruitment angle especially significant for platform safety and security officials.

Telegram messages and the handler

Court reporting says the alleged handler used the alias El Money and communicated with Lavrynovych on Telegram in Russian and Ukrainian. Police recovered more than 320 Telegram messages between the two dating back to September 2024.

The messages reportedly included an offer of £3,000 in cryptocurrency for the arson. After the attacks, El Money allegedly told Lavrynovych to leave the UK.

Regulatory and security stakes

The case sits at the intersection of platform moderation, illegal-content enforcement and concerns about online recruitment for sabotage. It also feeds wider concern about whether foreign-linked actors are using encrypted or semi-encrypted apps to direct crime.

Telegram has previously faced scrutiny in the UK, including a separate Ofcom investigation into child sexual abuse material. This latest contact does not itself amount to a formal investigation, but it puts the company back under pressure to show how it handles illegal activity.

What remains unknown

Telegram had not responded to the current inquiry at the time of the Guardian report. It is also not yet clear whether Ofcom will escalate from contact to a formal investigation or enforcement action.

Investigators have not publicly identified El Money, and it remains unresolved whether the handler was acting alone or as part of a broader Russian-linked network. Further reporting may clarify whether police have identified additional recruits or coordinators.

The case is now a test of how quickly UK regulators can move from sentencing evidence to platform scrutiny when criminal activity appears to have been organized through an app.