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EDL leader and founder has been convicted today 24-7-11 of leading a brawl involving 100 football fans. Stephen Lennon who also goes by the name Tommy Robinson was arrested on the 24/8/10 by officers who told him he was being taken into custody for suspected actual bodily harm from an outstanding allegation, which was later discontinued.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/mobile/uk-england-suffolk-14278957
Lennon also has a previous conviction for an assault on an off duty police officer, who attempted to stop a incident of domestic violence between Lennon and his partner Jenna Vowles. During the scuffle Lennon kicked the officer in the head. He was convicted on 18 April 2005 of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment, and also for assault with intent to resist arrest, for which he was sentenced to three months. His partner Vowles, also a BNP member at the time, was cautioned for possession of cocaine.
http://www.hopenothate.org.uk/features/article/26/the-bnp-past-of-the-edl-leader
Lennon was arrested in connection with a brawl at the EDL demonstration in Blackburn on 2-4-2011, he denied common assault against Alan McKee when he appeared at Blackburn Magistrates’ Court and was given bail. He will go on trial at Preston Magistrates’ Court on 29 September.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/mobile/uk-england-lancashire-13904178
In 2004 he joined the BNP with a family membership but founded the EDL in about March 2009, and appears to have used two pseudonyms to try and avoid his association with the BNP, Tommy Robinson, and Paul Harris, although the Paul Harris Pseudonym appears to have found itself in court as well.
Unite Against Fascism have catalogued various behaviour by Lennon, that has not got as far as a court, as has, the Islamic Standard. https://theislamicstandard.wordpress.com/tag/stephen-yaxley-lennon/
Anders Behring Breivik has claimed links to the EDL, who are now attempting to distance themselves from him, whilst still holding on to their anti-Islamic agenda. Worse still, Lennon was interviewed on Newsnight tonight by Jeremy Paxman and at one point appeared to be trying to capitalise on Breivik’s actions by claiming that such was the anger at ‘Islamification’ in the UK that we might expect a similar attack here in the next 5 to 10 years.
For one thing his words seemed to horribly echo Breivik’s in the now infamous ‘Manifesto’, and for another it seemed almost like a threat to me, which is quite sinister given Lennon’s history.
Perhaps he sees himself as one of the ‘Knights Templar’. I wonder if he owns a farm?
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