Tommy Robinson is guilty of harassing two journalists because we do not live in a “vigilante world”, jurors have been told, as the prosecution sought to use the far-right activist’s words against him.
Robinson had posted a video in which he told Daily Mail journalists he would find them after they wrote about his alleged role influencing England’s ۲۰۲۴ riots. He told them he had obtained details of where they and their families lived and warned them to abide by “men’s rules”.
Ben Holt, prosecuting, told the jury: “Let’s get real, shall we, and not live in a vigilante world where ‘men’s rules’ apply? Whatever they are. Let’s ground ourselves in a country where there is law and order.”
Summing up the case, Holt said Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, had accepted that sharing images of journalists’ homes and partial photos of their loved ones was intended to exert pressure.
However, he rejected Robinson’s insistence that the journalists on the receiving end of what the prosecution described as “bullyboy and intimidatory” conduct would not have been in fear of violence as a result.
Robinson, ۴۳, is charged with two counts of harassment causing fear of violence in ۲۰۲۴ to two journalists who were working for the Mail, Andrew Young and Jacob Dirnhuber. He denies the charges.
Robinson said in evidence that he had been in “a panic” after the Mail had in effect identified a hotel in Cyprus where he had gone with family and friends and published a photo of his ex-wife, which he said put her at risk.
But Holt said Robinson had never asked for the image to be taken down in calls and messages to the journalists and the Daily Mail’s editor. “Instead, he just threatened people. He acted like a bully,” he said.
Holt repeated the words Robinson had directed at the journalists: “Good for the goose, good for the gander. You are coming for me, I am coming for you.” Holt described this as “straightforward retaliation”.
Such was the concern of the journalists that the police had to be called on a number of occasions, said Holt, who pointed to “unpleasant” comments made by Robinson’s supporters online after some of his posts. Robinson had close to ۱ million followers on X at point, and some of his supporters are “unpredictable”, Holt said.
Alisdair Williamson KC, for the defence, said Robinson’s actions were justified because the “fear for him is real”.
“When you judge whether what he did was reasonable, you might think that he showed some restraint,” he told the jury. “I know what language I might use if people put my family in that position. The fear for him is real.”
Williamson said the journalists did not care about Robinson’s issues with the article, nor the stress it caused him, adding: “They don’t care to pick up the phone.”
A series of agreed facts that were read out to the court before the closing speeches included a reference to four threat-to-life warning notices that police had given to Robinson in ۲۰۱۸, ۲۰۱۹ and ۲۰۲۴, shortly after the Daily Mail article.
The court also heard that a video had been posted online in August ۲۰۲۴ by a man named Omar Abdirizak in which he said: “Tommy Robinson I got a message for you … we got pirates in every corner. Muslims in every corner,” before making a rifle gesture.
The trial continues.
