UK far-right figure Tommy Robinson charged with harassment

LONDON: British far-right figurehead Tommy Robinson has been charged with “harassment causing fear of violence” against two men, prosecutors said Wednesday, a day after he won early release from prison.

Robinson, 42, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is accused of targeting the men between August 5 and 7, 2024.

He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in central London on June 5.

“We have authorised the Metropolitan Police to charge Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, 42, with harassment causing fear of violence against two men,” the Crown Prosecution Service said in a statement.

The domestic Press Association news agency reported that the alleged victims are journalists.

The charges come as Robinson is due to be released in the coming days from Woodhill prison, near Milton Keynes in southeast England, after High Court judges cut his 18-month contempt of court sentence.

Also read: UK anti-Islam activist ‘Tommy Robinson’ admits breaching injunction

He was jailed in October 2024 for repeatedly breaching a 2021 injunction banning him from repeating libellous claims about a Syrian refugee.

Robinson told the court he had no intention of breaching the order again but the judge noted his “absence of contrition or remorse” and warned he could face up to two years’ imprisonment for future breaches.

A separate trial is set for October 2026 over allegations that Robinson refused to hand over the pin to his mobile phone when stopped by Kent Police in Folkestone under counter-terrorism powers in July 2024.

Robinson, a former football hooligan who founded the far-right English Defence League in 2009, has repeatedly been convicted for public order and contempt offences.

His rhetoric and online following have been linked to anti-migrant riots in 2024, Britain’s most serious civil disorder in years.

He has amassed a large online following around his vehemently anti-Muslim, anti-immigrant messaging.

His lawyers said at an appeal in April that his time in prison and his isolation was “making him ill” and exacerbating his attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and post traumatic stress disorder.

In February, thousands of Robinson supporters marched in London demanding his release, prompting tech billionaire Elon Musk to post a message of support on his online platform X.