Far-right activist Tommy Robinson says he was detained by police at Heathrow Airport under counter-terrorism laws.
Far-right activist Tommy Robinson says he was detained by police at Heathrow Airport under counter-terrorism laws
The 43-year-old, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, said officers seized both of his phones after stopping him under Section 3 of the Counter-Terrorism Border Security Act 2019.
In a social media post, Robinson shared photos of documents from the detention and said he was held for almost three hours. His iPhone and Samsung Galaxy were taken. He also asked supporters to donate to his legal defence.
A spokesperson for Robinson posted on X: “They likely want to see who he is talking to, and maybe find out who his sources are… This is an attack on free speech, this is an attack on investigative journalism, nothing more nothing less.”
Police have not stated why he was detained. Under the 2019 act, officers can stop, question, search and detain people they suspect of travelling to plan or carry out hostile acts.
Robinson has been in the headlines in recent weeks following unrest in Southampton after the murder of 18-year-old Henry Nowak, and has faced accusations of inflaming racial tensions in Belfast this week.
On Monday he shared a graphic video of a Sudanese suspect wielding a knife over a man during an attempted murder, and posted lists of planned demonstrations across the UK.
Tech billionaire Elon Musk reposted the demonstration list to his 240 million followers on X. Robinson repeatedly posted about the disorder, saying “foreign businesses are being destroyed in Belfast” and that homes suspected of housing asylum seekers “are getting trashed by angry locals”.
He was cleared of a terror charge in 2024 after refusing to give police the PIN to his phone during a stop and search at the Channel Tunnel in Folkestone. A district judge ruled they could not be sure the stop was lawful.
The Met Police and Heathrow Airport have been asked for comment.
