LONDON (AP) — A third suspect has been charged with arson over a series of fires targeting property linked to U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, police said Wednesday.
Petro Pochynok, 34, has been charged with conspiracy to commit arson with intent to endanger life. The Ukrainian national appeared at London's Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday morning, speaking only to confirm his name and London address.
Two other men also have been charged with setting fire to Starmer’s personal home, along with a property where he once lived and a car he had sold. They are Ukrainian national Roman Lavrynovych, 21, and Ukraine-born Romanian national Stanislav Carpiuc, 26.
Lavrynovych and Carpiuc appeared in court earlier. All three suspcts have been ordered detained until a joint hearing at London's Central Criminal Court on June 6.
No injuries were reported from the fires in north London, which occurred on three nights between May 8 and May 12.
Starmer and his family had moved out of his home after he was elected in July, and they live at the prime minister’s official Downing Street residence.
A Toyota RAV4 that Starmer once owned was set ablaze on May 8, just down the street from the house where he lived before he became prime minister. The door of an apartment building where he once lived was set on fire on May 11, and on May 12 the doorway of his home was charred after being set ablaze.
Counterterrorism detectives led the investigation because it involves the prime minister. The charges were authorized by the Crown Prosecution Service’s Counter Terrorism Division, which is responsible for prosecuting offenses relating to state threats, among other crimes.
Starmer called the fires “an attack on all of us, on democracy and the values that we stand for.”
Fire damage is seen in the doorway of a house belonging to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Kentish Town in London, Tuesday, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
Police Community Support Officers stand near the fire damaged doorway of a house belonging to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Kentish Town in London, Tuesday, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
Police Community Support Officers and Police Officers stand on the street near a house belonging to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at Kentish Town in London, Tuesday, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
NEW YORK (AP) — Robbed an inning earlier, Cody Bellinger wasn't sure his first three-homer game had been swiped away again.
“I didn't know at first,” he said. “For that third one to finally get over feels pretty good.”
Bellinger hit three two-run homers against his former team and was denied a fourth by a spectacular catch, leading the Yankees to an 11-0 rout of the Chicago Cubs on Friday night.
Aaron Judge made a trio of outstanding grabs in right field for the Yankees, who have won fifth straight games following a a six-game losing streak.
Bellinger, whose dad Clay played for the Yankees from 1999 to 2001, is a two-time All-Star and 2019 NL MVP.
He spent 2023 and ’24 with the Cubs, hitting .266 with 18 homers and 78 RBIs in 130 games last year while missing time because of a broken right rib. The Cubs traded him to New York in December with $52.5 million remaining on his contract and agreed to pay the Yankees $5 million.
He homered in a three-run third off Chris Flexen and in the fifth against Caleb Thielbar for this 18th multi-homer game. Bellinger nearly went deep in the seventh but was robbed by Kyle Tucker on a drive above the right-field wall.
“I was watching it. He timed it up perfect, so I was a little sick about it, honestly,” Bellinger said. “But it was a good catch.”
“Boys were giving me a hard time after he robbed it. Boonie was giving me hard time,” Bellinger added.
A four-time All-Star and a Gold Glove winner, Tucker snatched the ball as a fan tried for it, the spectator clasping both sides of the outfielder's glove.
“I caught the ball and he caught my glove, so I figured even if I dropped it they’d probably look at it and get it overturned," Tucker said. "I’ve probably had some encounters with me trying to go into the stands and catching a ball and me hitting someone’s hand or whatever but I don’t know if anyone’s ever actually kind of caught my glove while doing it.”
Bellinger homered in the eighth off Jordan Wicks, just above the red glove of leaping center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and into the dark glove of a kid in the front row.
“The fan just beat to the spot," Crow-Armstrong said. "He just had a better chance of catching it higher than I did.”
Bellinger, who had rounded first, watched and then smiled when he saw he had hit No. 3.
“Glad the fan caught it before PCA could grab it,” said Bellinger, who met the boy after and got the ball back. “I’ve seen PCA rob so many homers. He’s a freak athlete out there.”
Bellinger is batting .406 over a career-high 16-game hitting streak, raising his average to .285 with 16 homers and 54 RBIs.
He had spoken with his Cubs ex-teammates during batting practice.
“No, no, no revenge,” he said. “Honestly, ultimately it was just fun to be out there. I saw a bunch of guys I hadn’t seen in a while and I shared a bunch of good memories with them for these past two years.”
Jazz Chisholm Jr. and manager Aaron Boone encouraged Bellinger to emerge from the dugout for a curtain call.
“He was a little reluctant, but then the Bell-lin-ger” over the dugout got pretty loud. So I think he succumbed to it," Boone said. “Belly’s loved being here and loved playing here in a meaningful place to him, going back to his childhood."
Bellinger turns 30 on Sunday and can opt out of the final season of his contract this fall. With long balls and wide smiles, he seems to have found a home in the Yankees clubhouse.
He tried not to make much of getting the three homers against the Cubs, but Bellinger's teammates could sense the significance.
“It’s always good to go against your old teammates that you spend a lot of time with, you know, you respect,” Boone said. “To perform right away against them I’m sure probably is a little cherry on top for him.”
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger (35) hits a home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger reacts after lining out during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger hits a home run during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger hits a home run during the third inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
New York Yankees' Cody Bellinger hits a home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Friday, July 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
