Tucked away near the shiny football stadium of a Premier League club in the British capital lies a plain, unremarkable apartment building. Beyond its unremarkable beige brickwork exists a grim secret: a cramped flat linked to deadly atrocities taking place a vast distance to the south.
Per UK government records, this apartment in north London is connected to a international web of firms implicated in the mass hiring of fighters to combat in Sudan alongside militias charged of myriad war crimes and ethnic cleansing.
Hundreds of former Colombian military personnel have been recruited to fight with Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a armed faction blamed for mass rapes, ethnic slaughter, and the widespread murder of women and children.
These contractors were key participants in the paramilitaries’ capture of the western Sudanese city of El Fasher in late October, which sparked a wave of violence that experts believe has cost at least 60,000 lives.
As reports of atrocities mount, connections have been found between the mercenaries hired to capture El Fasher and locations in the UK capital.
The apartment in Tottenham is registered to a corporation called Zeuz Global, established by two people identified and sanctioned last week by the US treasury for hiring Colombian mercenaries to combat for the RSF.
Both figures – Colombian nationals in their 50s – are described in documents at the UK company registry as resident in Britain.
The company is operational. The day after the US treasury imposed restrictions on those running the Colombian mercenary operation, Zeuz Global suddenly relocated its registered address to the centre of central London. Its new postcode matches one luxury accommodation in a central district.
Both hotels stated they had no connection to Zeuz Global and had no idea why the company had listed their postcodes.
"This is of serious worry that the key individuals the US government states are orchestrating this fighter recruitment have been able to establish a UK company operating from a flat in north London," stated Mike Lewis, a analyst and ex-participant of a UN panel on Sudan.
Analysts argue the saga raises concerns over how individuals openly censured by the US for "fueling the conflict in Sudan" were able to seemingly set up and run a company in the UK capital.
The UK's top diplomat has condemned the RSF for "organized murder, abuse and sexual violence" following the group’s seizure of El Fasher. The RSF has been charged by the US with acts of genocide.
When asked about the company, Companies House did not respond on whether it had knowledge of the firm’s activities or confirm the residency status of the penalized people.
Reaching out to Zeuz was unsuccessful; its online site, set up in May, was marked as "being built" with no contact details.
According to the American authorities, the figure at the centre of the South American recruitment operation for the RSF is a dual Colombian-Italian national and retired Colombian military officer located in the Gulf state.
The US alleges this individual of playing a key part in hiring former Colombian soldiers to be deployed to Sudan using a Colombian recruitment firm. His spouse was also penalized for owning and managing the agency.
Another individual with two citizenships was similarly censured for managing a company alleged of processing money and payroll for the operation employing the mercenaries.
"During 2024 and 2025, US-based firms associated with this individual engaged in many wire transfers, totalling many millions of US dollars," the official announcement read.
In spring of the current year, the penalized figures registered a firm in the UK capital named ODP8 Ltd – later renamed Zeuz Global.
Three days later, the RSF attacked the Zamzam displacement camp, killing more than 1,500 civilians. After its capture, the site was handed over to the hired fighters, who began planning for attacking El Fasher.
The sanctioned individuals are named in Companies House records as holding "initial shareholdings" in the company, with one identified as a key controller.
The two list Britain as their "place of residency".
The recruitment of the South Americans has had a significant effect on the course of the conflict, experts state. These fighters have reportedly trained children to be soldiers, as well as acting as marksmen, foot soldiers, instructors, and operators for unmanned aircraft.
These aircraft were key in the capture of El Fasher and during combat in surrounding areas.
"The war in Sudan is a technologically advanced one, with precision munitions and long-range drones causing daily fatalities," said the expert. "These systems require outside assistance to operate. We know that the Colombian mercenary operation has been a significant part of this outside support."
He noted that the involvement of penalized persons in a UK company highlighted broader concerns over the absence of strict vetting when companies are set up.
"Owning a UK company like this is a passport for criminals to do business with respectable entities. It's still harder to join a fitness centre in most cases than to set up a UK company," he said.
A government source stated that the recent introduction of "mandatory identity verification" for company directors would provide more confidence about who was setting up and running UK companies.
The Colombians’ involvement in Sudan first emerged last year, prompting an apology from Colombia’s foreign ministry.
One of the fighters recently confirmed that he had instructed minors in Sudan and seen combat in El Fasher.
The UAE, repeatedly alleged of arming the RSF, has also been linked to the recruitment of the contractors. A investigation alleged that UAE nationals supplying Colombians to the RSF were connected to a high-ranking Emirati figure. The UAE has consistently denied these allegations.
A UK official said: "The UK is calling for an immediate end to atrocities, the protection of non-combatants, and the removal of barriers to humanitarian access."
They added that the UK had recently sanctioned RSF commanders for their role in the atrocities in El Fasher.
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