Tommy Robinson guilty of harassing two Daily Mail journalists
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The court heard how Robinson had hired private investigators to find the addresses of two Daily Mail journalists Political activist Tommy Robinson has been convicted of harassing two Daily Mail journalists.
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A jury at Southwark Crown Court found the 43-year-old, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, guilty of two counts of harassment causing fear of violence.
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The case concerned Robinson's response to Daily Mail and Mail Online articles from August 2024, showing him on holiday in Cyprus while riots took place in England following the Southport murders.
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The court had heard how Robinson, from Bedfordshire, used "bully-boy, intimidatory tactics" to frighten reporters Andrew Young and Jacob Dirnhuber, forcing them to employ security or leave home.
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Robinson had denied the charges, saying he had "panicked" and had been "scared" when the Daily Mail published a story accusing him of "stoking race riots from his sunbed".
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He told the jury he felt the article had "endangered" his family by revealing they were staying in a hotel near Ayia Napa in Cyprus.
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After the guilty verdicts, Frank Ferguson, the head of the Crown Prosecution Service's Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, said Robinson had "weaponised social media and subjected two journalists to a campaign of harassment which caused them serious fear of violence". Robinson was granted bail ahead of his sentencing, scheduled for 16 December.
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Harassment causing fear of violence can carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, or up to 14 years if the offence is racially or religiously aggravated.
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Robinson had wiped tears from his eyes as he gave evidence in the dock about events in August 2024 During the week-long trial, prosecutor Ben Holt had told the court that after three girls were murdered in Southport on 29 July 2024, Robinson had made a number of posts on social media.
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This had alerted the Daily Mail and Mail Online to the fact that he was in Cyprus.
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The Daily Mail published articles with photos of the defendant, including one showing him "reclining on a sunbed using his mobile telephone".
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Southwark Crown Court heard that over the following days, he responded with a series of posts on his X account. On 4 August, these had included: "The daily mail have purposely gave the location of where I am with my children knowing full well that people want to kill me."
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Robinson admitted hiring private investigators to take photographs of the home addresses of Dirnhuber and Young.
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He said he had "wanted to find the journalists" to "put pressure on them".
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But he told the jury he had not known they were "in fear."
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"That wasn't my intention at all," he said.
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"It was an attempt to bring the Daily Mail to the table."
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Robinson arriving at Southwark Crown Court The jury accepted the prosecution's case that Robinson had hired detectives to "intimidate" the journalists.
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Photographs of Dirnhuber outside his home and cropped images of Young's family had been posted online by Robinson.
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The court heard that, as well as social media posts and direct messages to Dirnhuber, the defendant had become "increasingly menacing" on a telephone call with Young on August 5, 2024, telling the freelance journalist: "I'm coming to get you."
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Jurors rejected Robinson's claim that the Daily Mail had endangered his family by publishing the story.
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He had wept in the witness box on Thursday as he spoke about his relationship with his children.
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A police investigation had begun after the journalists reported concerns for their safety following posts on X that had contained their personal information.
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A Met Police spokesperson said: "There are legitimate and established routes that can be pursued by people who have concerns or complaints about their treatment by the media."
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They said, instead of following these routes, Robinson had issued "threatening online posts in the knowledge that they would almost certainly lead to his followers to target and intimidate those journalists".
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The spokesperson said the journalists, fearing for their families' safety, had left their homes and hired private security.
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The spokesperson added: "This kind of intimidatory behaviour is not acceptable, and anyone behaving in such a way to intimidate, harass and threaten others either online or in the real world can expect to be investigated and brought before the courts, as was the case here."
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