OMM Newsroom
Yohannes Natland, a 19-year-old Norwegian citizen convicted in a plot to carry out a contract killing in Britain, has been sentenced to 20 years in custody. Police uncovered the plan before it could be carried out.
Natland was arrested in a hotel room in Huddersfield, northern England, in March 2025. He had two firearms and 19 rounds of ammunition with him. He was found guilty of conspiracy to murder at a retrial in July. The sentence was handed down at Woolwich Crown Court on October 16.
Prosecutors said Natland was recruited for the killing by Sweden’s Foxtrot Network, an organised crime group. The group has been sanctioned by the United Kingdom and the United States over its links to Iran. However, British counterterrorism police said they found no evidence of a direct connection to Iran in Natland’s case.
$28,000 promised for the killing
Natland was promised 270,000 Norwegian kroner, about $28,000, to carry out the killing. Shortly after turning 18, he flew from Stavanger to Manchester on March 17, 2025, using an emergency passport in place of his expired regular passport.
Natland was directed to a hotel in Huddersfield, where firearms, ammunition, cash and a stolen car fitted with false number plates had been prepared. Investigators said he took two guns and 19 rounds of ammunition and returned to his room.
Police in Norway arrested a teenager suspected of recruiting Natland and found messages on the suspect’s phone that revealed the plot. The identity of the intended target in Britain has not yet been established.
During the trial, Natland admitted possessing a semi-automatic pistol, a revolver and ammunition, but denied conspiracy to murder. He said he did not intend to kill anyone and had exaggerated the plan to impress others.
Court criticises network’s recruitment of young people
Judge Chima-Grubb, delivering the sentence, said the Foxtrot Network recruited young people to commit violent crimes while trying to conceal its links to the attacks.
“You agreed to do this and, despite having many opportunities to withdraw, you continued with the plan,” the judge told Natland.
Natland’s lawyer, Paul Haines, said his client’s drug use had affected his mental health and impaired his decision-making. Natland had previously said he used drugs almost every day and experienced psychosis as a result.
Commissioner Helen Flanagan, head of the Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Command, confirmed that the intended target had yet to be identified. She said the Foxtrot Network had been sanctioned by the United Kingdom and the United States for organising violence against Jewish and Israeli targets in Europe on behalf of the Iranian government.
Flanagan said police would continue working to prevent hostile states from carrying out criminal acts in Britain. Natland must serve at least two-thirds of his 20-year sentence in custody.
