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Tommy Robinson appeared at the home of a Independent journalist late at night and threatened to falsely accuse his partner of being a pedophile in an attempt to prevent the publication of a story, a court has heard.
The founder of the English Defense League, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, received an order for protection against stalking on Friday after a court was told that he sent threatening messages to Lizzie Dearden in an attempt to get her to leave. an investigation into allegations that he misappropriated donations from supporters.
The Westminster Magistrates Court heard that he appeared at Mrs Dearden’s home in South London in a black Range Rover at around 9:50 p.m. on January 17 this year, two days later. The independent The home affairs correspondent emailed his lawyers seeking comment on the article.
Robinson, speaking on the building’s intercom and shouting outside, asked the journalist and her partner to “come down and talk.” He tried to enter the building, but they refused to let him in and security turned him down.
He then referred to Ms. Dearden’s partner by name and yelled out loud, “I know you’re in. Get out there and we’ll fix this. I will come back every day if necessary. “
The witnesses also heard him say: “There is a pedophile living in this building.”
Robinson then left the area with a second person in the car, but was arrested at Elephant and Castle, south London, around 11:01 p.m.
The court heard that he also posted photos of Ms. Dearden’s partner on the social media app Telegram with the comment: “I have received some serious allegations about this man. Anyone with information on this man, please contact me. “
Ryan Dowding, an attorney acting on behalf of the Metropolitan Police commissioner, told the court that Robinson was “a high-profile public figure and a self-described freelance journalist.”
Dowding said: “In the past he has mentioned Lizzie Dearden in numerous posts and videos in which he has tried to discredit her by calling her a liar, a hypocrite and a pirate, which has led to a flood of comments from others of a much more abusive and violent nature. “.
On January 19, Robinson sent a lengthy email purporting to respond to the allegations made in the article written by Ms. Dearden.
He ended with the claim that he knew “a source who came to me with information” that his partner “cheated on and sexually abused a child”, adding: “Printing a full story about me using a questionable source could make me do public accusations. ”.
Dowding told the court: “That clearly states the purpose of the email to prevent Ms. Dearden from going to the press with her article.”
District Judge Tan Ikram issued an interim protection order against stalking until a full hearing in Westminster Magistrates Court on July 2.
He said: “The evidence suggests that she has engaged in surveillance, has identified her address and her partner and with another appeared at the address, who has made suggestions that her partner is a pedophile. It is suggested that he has said that he will return to the address every night and that he will publish a photograph of the journalist’s partner.
“What the police are saying is that they have gone into all this to persuade them not to publish the story.
“I am satisfied that they may be actions associated with stalking. There is a clear prima facie case that makes it necessary and proportionate to issue a provisional stalking order until this case concludes in a final hearing. “
Robinson did not appear in court to challenge a request for an order to protect against stalking, despite the fact that he posted a video on his Telegram account referring to the hearing that took place on Friday afternoon, and was not represented by an attorney. .
The terms of the order prohibit Robinson from contacting Ms Dearden and her partner, attending the South London area surrounding her address, engaging in surveillance activities, having photos or videos taken, posting references to them on sites web or social networks directly or indirectly with the sole exception of responding to articles written about him and publishing or sharing his home address.
David Marley, Acting Editor of The independent, said: “Lizzie is a brilliant and courageous journalist who has reported extensively on the far right despite regularly facing threats and trolling. What happened in this case is completely unacceptable. Neither Lizzie nor The independent will be deterred from pursuing important stories through threats and intimidation. “
