Tommy Robinson arrested on anti-terror charges after London protest
His arrest came after a film was allegedly shown in contempt of court
Last updated 28th Jul 2024
Controversial activist Tommy Robinson has been arrested on counter-terror charges following a large-scale protest in London.
Robinson, who is known for his far-right rhetoric, attended a protest at Trafalgar Square on Saturday (July 27th), which saw thousands of supporters drawn to the capital.
His detention was confirmed in a post on his Twitter account, and came following the alleged screening of a film to a crowd in breach of a High Court order.
Police have said that officers are investigating the incident and conducting further enquiries as they try to piece the events together.
Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley Lennon, also shared a film with a duration of 1 hour and 45 minutes to his Twitter account.
Uploading the video to his platform, Robinson had said he had avoided publishing the video previously because he was "scared".
Supporters of Robinson confirmed that Tommy had been detained by police on his account, writing in a statement: "We can confirm that Tommy Robinson has been detained by police using powers afforded to them under the Terrorism Act 2000.
"That's right, you read that correctly, Tommy is being held by police using counter terrorism legislation. We will update you as and when we can."
Metropolitan Police officers confirmed that there was no involvement from the force in his arrest.
Responding to a claim from one of Robinson's supporters on the film on Saturday evening, the police said: "We did not know what films would be shown during the event.
"Organisers of protests are not required to share those details in advance. There is no power for us to compel them to do so.
"Officers on duty for the event couldn't reasonably have been aware of civil proceedings ongoing in relation to a particular film, but having now been made aware we're making further inquiries to determine what action we need to take."