Anarchists take over oligarch’s £15m mansion ... and vow to turn it into shelter for homeless
SQUATTERS have invaded this £15million mansion – inviting homeless people inside, screening anarchist films and even playing football in the library.
Between 25 and 30 activists entered the Russian oligarch’s Grade II listed building on Monday and barricaded the front door.
They plan to run a free clothes shop for rough sleepers in the former Spanish cultural centre.
The mansion in Belgravia’s Eaton Square, central London, is thought to have been empty since it was bought by Russian billionaire banker Andrey Goncharenko in 2014. Tom Fox, 23, said he and his fellow activists intend to make a stand against rich investors leaving similar homes derelict.
The squatters have access to gas, electricity, hot running water and even a WiFi network named ‘Billion’ at the property. They intend to screen anarchist films to guests on a big screen and have turned what was the mansion’s library into a makeshift football pitch, using a DIY ball made with duct tape.
Mr Fox, who grew up in Manches- ter and is a qualified plumber, joked that they would leave if Mr Goncharenko gave them £50,000.
He said: ‘There is so much empty space and so many empty houses because people have invested in these dead assets, these stale assets. There are so many homeless people who need a place to stay. This place is in great condition and we have got nine or ten homeless people living here.
‘There are these preconceptions that they are all crack addicts and things but many people are in this situation because they have just slipped through the net.
‘There would be plenty of people willing to work as minders [for these properties], you could set up CCTV and then let the homeless in. There are people dying on the streets at the moment.’
The mansion is the latest of 33 high-profile central London properties Mr Fox claims to have squatted in. The anarchist group set up camp in Trafalgar Square’s Admiralty Arch in April 2015 and unfurled banners reading ‘Homes for all’. Members gained access to the Eaton Square mansion by opening a basement window, then spreading the word online.
Alleged hacker Lauri Love, 32, facing extradition to the US accused of stealing data from intelligence agencies, has visited friends living in the squat, but did not stay there, Mr Fox said.
The house was built around 1825 by the Grosvenor family and was up until recently the home of the Instituto Cervantes of London, a Spanish cultural centre, which has now moved to The Strand.
The squatters will appear at Central London County Court in February as they fight attempts to evict them from the property.