Situated near the shiny soccer ground of a Premier League club in London lies a squat, unremarkable block of flats. Behind its ordinary beige brickwork exists a grim secret: a small flat linked to murderous atrocities taking place a vast distance to the south.
Per British official documents, this apartment in the capital is connected to a international web of firms implicated in the mass recruitment of mercenaries to fight in the African nation alongside militias accused of myriad war crimes and ethnic cleansing.
A large number of ex-soldiers from Colombia have been recruited to fight with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group responsible for sexual violence, targeted killings, and the systematic murder of women and children.
These contractors were key participants in the paramilitaries’ capture of the south-western Sudanese city of El Fasher in late October, which sparked a killing frenzy that analysts say has cost over 60,000 lives.
While accounts of violence mount, connections have been identified between the mercenaries hired to capture El Fasher and locations in the city of London.
The flat in Tottenham is listed to a company called Zeuz Global, set up by two individuals identified and sanctioned recently by the US treasury for recruiting Colombian mercenaries to fight for the RSF.
Both figures – Colombian nationals in their 50s – are described in documents at Companies House as living in the United Kingdom.
The firm is operational. The day after the United States announced sanctions on those running the Colombian mercenary operation, Zeuz Global suddenly relocated its official location to the centre of central London. Its new postcode corresponds to a luxury accommodation in a central district.
The establishments in question stated they had no connection to Zeuz Global and were unaware why the firm had used their addresses.
"This is of major concern that the key individuals the American authorities states are directing this fighter recruitment have been able to set up a UK company operating from a flat in the capital," stated Mike Lewis, a researcher and ex-participant of a United Nations group on Sudan.
Analysts argue the saga raises questions over how people publicly sanctioned by the US for "contributing to the civil war in Sudan" were able to seemingly establish and operate a company in the British capital.
The UK's top diplomat has censured the RSF for "organized murder, torture and sexual violence" following the faction's capture of El Fasher. The RSF has been accused by the US with genocide.
When questioned about Zeuz Global, the registry did not respond on whether it had awareness of the firm’s operations or verify the location of the sanctioned individuals.
Contacting Zeuz was fruitless; its online site, created in May, was marked as "under construction" with lacking information.
Per the US treasury, the figure at the centre of the Colombian recruiting network for the RSF is a dual Colombian-Italian national and former army officer located in the Gulf state.
The US accuses this individual of playing a central role in recruiting former Colombian soldiers to be sent to Sudan using a Colombian recruitment firm. His wife was also penalized for owning and managing the firm.
Another individual with two citizenships was similarly censured for overseeing a business accused of processing money and payroll for the operation employing the mercenaries.
"During 2024 and 2025, US-based firms linked with this individual conducted numerous wire transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the US treasury statement said.
In spring of this year, the penalized figures registered a company in the UK capital called ODP8 Ltd – later re-branded Zeuz Global.
Three days later, the RSF assaulted the Zamzam displacement camp, killing more than 1,500 innocent people. After its capture, the camp was transferred to the hired fighters, who began planning for attacking El Fasher.
The sanctioned individuals are named in official UK documents as owning "initial shareholdings" in the firm, with one named as a person of "significant control".
Both list Britain as their "place of residency".
The hiring of the Colombians has had a profound impact on the course of the war, analysts say. These nationals have allegedly instructed minors to be combatants, as well as acting as marksmen, infantrymen, instructors, and operators for drones.
These drones proved key in the fall of El Fasher and during fighting in surrounding areas.
"The war in Sudan is a hi-tech one, with precision munitions and long-range drones causing daily civilian deaths," said the analyst. "These weapons require outside assistance to operate. We know that the Colombian mercenary operation has been a major component of this outside support."
He added that the participation of penalized persons in a UK company highlighted wider worries over the absence of rigorous checks when companies are set up.
"Owning a UK company like this is a passport for criminals to do deals with legitimate counterparts. It's still more difficult to join a fitness centre in most cases than to set up a UK company," he stated.
A government source said that the new rollout of "compulsory ID checks" for corporate officers would provide greater assurance about who was establishing and running UK companies.
The role of the South Americans in Sudan first came to light last year, leading to an apology from the South American nation's government.
One of the fighters recently admitted that he had instructed minors in Sudan and fought in El Fasher.
The UAE, long accused of supplying weapons to the RSF, has also been linked to the hiring of the contractors. A report alleged that UAE nationals providing Colombians to the RSF were linked to a senior UAE government official. The UAE has consistently denied these claims.
A British government spokesperson said: "The UK is demanding an halt to violence, the protection of civilians, and the removal of barriers to humanitarian access."
They added that the UK had also sanctioned RSF leaders for their role in the crimes in El Fasher.
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