Tommy Robinson Found Guilty of Harassing Journalists, Lashes Out on X After Verdict: 'F***ing Wankers'

Far-right activist Tommy Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, has been found guilty of harassing two journalists involved in Daily Mail reporting. A Southwark Crown Court jury convicted Robinson of two counts of harassment causing fear of violence. The offence carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

Frank Ferguson, head of the Crown Prosecution Service's Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, said that Robinson 'weaponised social media and subjected two journalists to a campaign of harassment which caused them serious fear of violence.'

Tommy Robinson Lashes Out on Social Media

Following the verdict, Robinson turned to X to share his sentiments over his legal loss. 'F***ing wankers,' he posted while sharing the Daily Mail's coverage of the court ruling titled 'Tommy Robinson found guilty of harassing Daily Mail journalists after jurors heard he used "bully-boy tactics" to intimidate reporters who exposed his UK riots shame.'

Before that, he posted about his scheduled sentencing: 'I am not allowed to give my opinion; if I do, I will be automatically imprisoned. I will be sentenced on December 16th at Southwark Crown Court. Thank you to everyone for the love & support. NO SURRENDER.'

Robinson also made another comment about the Daily Mail's story: 'Look at them still saying, saying they exposed my riots shame. I didn't encourage violence or riots. The facts are I appealed for calm the whole time. There was no truth in their story back then and there is no truth in it now.'

What Was the Root of the Case?

On 5 August 2024, the Daily Mail and MailOnline, through journalists Andrew Young and Jacob Dirnhuber, published an article with the headline 'Stoking Race Riots From His Sunbed,' accompanied by a photo of Robinson on a sunbed looking at his mobile phone.

The article implied that Robinson was fuelling anti-immigration riots in the UK while on holiday. The basis was Robinson's social media activities and the timing of his stay in Cyprus. For his part, Robinson said he felt that the article 'endangered' his family by revealing their whereabouts.

Following the publication of the report, Robinson intimidated the journalists through social media posts and phone calls.

One post on X tagged Dirnhuber alongside a photo of him: 'Got ya [Jacob]. This is Jacob; he likes to locate & endanger families. Jacob & the rest of the Daily Mail journalists who were involved in endangering my children have today been located. I look forward to hearing on camera your justification for doxxing my children's location.'

In another post that tagged Dirnhuber, Robinson said: 'Get your colleague Andrew Young to call me back. You see, he published pictures of my family & gave away their location. I'm working on a news piece myself about all of you; I won't identify any innocent people or give address, as that's not morally right, unlike you scum.'

Journalists' Fear

Young said he feared that Robinson's 800,000 followers on X at the time might seek revenge against him and his family. Dirnhuber said he and his partner had to leave their home because Robinson already knew their address.

Robinson eventually made light of the incident and thanked the Daily Mail for allowing him to 'look dapper as f**k in front of the world.' The court heard evidence during the week-long trial before the jury returned its guilty verdicts.