Tommy Robinson was today sentenced to 18 months after pleading guilty to contempt of court, with the judge telling him: ‘No one is above the law.’
The 41-year-old, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, admitted 10 breaches of a 2021 High Court order banning him from repeating defamatory allegations against Syrian refugee Jamal Hijazi, who successfully sued him .
The claims were aired in Robinson’s film Silenced, which was funded by Infowars, an American company founded by infamous conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.
Mr. Justice Johnson said he would not suspend the sentence due to the seriousness of the crime and because “the suspect has a history of poor compliance with court orders.”
As the verdict was handed down, Robinson – in a gray suit and white shirt – glanced and nodded to his supporters in the public gallery, and rocked slightly in the dock, with his hands clasped in front of him.
His supporters gathered in the public gallery and stood outside the court, while some in the court waved and blew kisses to Robinson as he walked away from the dock.
Tommy Robinson sits next to a port officer in court today, in a sketch drawn by Elizabeth Cook
The activist, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, had admitted contempt of court
Supporters of the far-right activist gathered outside Woolwich Crown Court this morning
In 2010 – when he was of course last jailed for contempt – Robinson cried in a Sky TV documentary as he spoke about his ten-week solitary confinement in HMP Belmarsh.
Mr Justice Johnson told the court: ‘In a democratic society, underpinned by the rule of law, court orders must be adhered to. They (defendants) have the right to disagree with the outcome, they do not have the right to ignore the court order.
‘No one is above the law, no one can choose which laws to obey. They have no right to set themselves up as judges in their own cases… Otherwise the rule of law would collapse.
‘The defendant was fully aware of the terms of the order and the consequences of breaching it. The violations were not accidental, negligent or merely reckless. Both were a planned, direct and blatant violation of the court order.”
The judge said Robinson would likely be released halfway through his prison sentence.
He described the breaches as ‘sophisticated’ and designed to maximize coverage – with one video reportedly being viewed 44 million times.
Robinson was banned from repeating false allegations against Jamal Hijazi after the then schoolboy successfully sued him for defamation.
Mr Justice Johnson acknowledged that Robinson initially complied with the 2021 order until about February 2023, when he was asked about the Hijazi case in an interview.
But the judge said: ‘The most important harm caused by any offense is the corrosive effect it has on the administration of justice.’
He said the fact that Robinson continued to host the offending video on his social media was further signaling his determination to defy the order.
He said: ‘The defendant has not shown any remorse for breaches of the order, it would be surprising if he had.
‘The suspect has not shown any inclination to comply with the ban in the future. All his actions so far suggest that he considers himself above the law.
“(He) continues to maintain material on his social media account in violation of the order even while this hearing is taking place.”
The judge said Robinson could receive a four-month sentence reduction if he showed remorse and deleted the video from his social media while he worked to have the video removed elsewhere.
The activist’s contempt violations include broadcasting a film, titled Silenced, during a demonstration in Trafalgar Square in July – one of six actions claimed to have breached the ban between June and July this year .
The film is also pinned to the top of his X account.
Sasha Wass KC, for Robinson, told the court earlier today that the film’s production was funded by Infowars, a company run by American Alex Jones, who claimed the 2012 Sandy Hook school massacre was a hoax.
A man with an English flag watches as Robinson supporters gather outside Woolwich Crown Court
Far-right protesters walk through London on Saturday at a rally backed by Robinson
Mr Hijazi successfully sued Robinson after the then schoolboy was attacked at Almondbury Community School in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, in October 2018.
Robinson made false claims after a clip of the incident went viral, including one about Mr Hijazi attacking girls at his school, leading to the defamation case.
Mr Justice Nicklin ordered Robinson to pay Mr Hijazi £100,000 in damages and his legal costs, and also made an order restraining Robinson from repeating the allegations he made against the then teenager.
In a separate case, Robinson has also been charged with failing to provide the PIN number for his mobile phone under Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act.
It follows his arrest in July at a port in Kent, where he was accused of failing to comply with police demands.
Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act allows officers to stop anyone passing through a UK port ‘to determine whether they may be concerned or concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism’.
He will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on November 13 in connection with this latest incident.
Robinson posted a video of himself arriving at Luton Airport on October 20 and said he was surprised he had not been arrested.
He then handed himself in to the police, accompanied by a large entourage and many supporters. He was taken into custody ahead of today’s hearing.
On Saturday, thousands of his supporters gathered in central London for a protest that Robinson missed after being remanded in custody.
Protesters carried placards reading ‘Two tier Keir fueled the riots’ – a reference to the widespread disorder in Britain this summer, amid anger over the Southport dance class massacre, after misinformation on social media identified the suspected killer had wrongly identified as a Muslim migrant – and chanted ‘We want Tommy out’ as they walked from Victoria Station to Parliament Square.
During the far-right march, two people were arrested: one for a racially aggravated public order offense and a second for violating the terms of the Public Order Act.
Another couple was arrested for assault during the Stand Up To Racism counter-protest.
Key landmarks near the march routes – including the Cenotaph and Winston Churchill’s statue in Parliament Square – were closed to the public due to concerns about damage.
A young man holds a photo of Donald Trump as he marches through London as part of the crowd
Counter-protesters from Stand Up To Racism also took to the streets of London
Aidan Eardley KC, representing the Solicitor General who brought the case, said a “resolution” had been reached on the allegations.
Mr Eardley said: ‘The background to this case begins in October 2018. Jamal Hijazi was a 15-year-old schoolboy, recently arrived in Britain from Syria.
‘He was attacked by a fellow student. That incident was filmed and published online. That video went viral. It generated a lot of commentary suggesting that Jamal Hijazi was the victim and that the motivation was racist.
“Mr. Yaxley-Lennon took an interest in that and, according to him, was presented with evidence indicating that Mr. Hijazi was a violent bully at school and got his comeuppance.”
He said Robinson posted his videos explaining this to his Facebook account, which had about 1 million followers at the time.
Mr Eardley said Robinson had been taken to court by the schoolboy for defamation, but cited a defense of ‘truth’.
The judge ruled that Robinson had not sufficiently proven his case to meet the legal threshold.
Mr Eardley said the ‘Silenced’ film was ‘a substantial piece of work’ lasting around 90 minutes, ‘completely devoted’ to the Hijazi case.