Veteran activist Tommy Robinson questioned why the police had arrested him at all in a case of what he called self defence over an altercation at a London train station last month.
British Transport Police said in a statement Wednesday night that no charges were being brought after prosecutors had come to the conclusion “there was not a realistic prospect of conviction”. Veteran street organiser Tommy Robinson had been arrested earlier this month over a confrontation which led to a second party being hospitalised.
As reported at the time, Robinson had been pictured standing near a man lying unconscious on the floor of London St Pancras railway station. Speaking to a bystander, Robinson was heard saying in a recording: “He fucking came at me. He come at me bruv… He come at me bruv, you saw that.”
Robinson said he was compelled to remain silent on the case for several days on advice of his lawyer, but when he did break his silence the activist claimed the man had been aggressive and had repeatedly tried to get close, making Robinson feel like he had to defend himself.
He also repeatedly asserted that when CCTV footage that police had of the incident came to light, he would be exonerated. Robinson has called on police to release the footage.
The other party to the confrontation has not been named and was later released from hospital. Per the police, he declined to provide a statement to officers. Sky News states of the man’s disinclination to engage that he “does not want to pursue charges” and that “CCTV footage showed him initially following Robinson as the activist walked away, before he was hit.”
Despite the claimed self-defence element asserted by Robinson, police made clear they treated the second party as the “victim” and had intended to charge Robinson for Grievous Bodily Harm, which carries a hefty prison sentence.
In a statement following police announcing the case was no longer being pursued, Robinson said he feels aggrieved at the treatment he received from both the police and the media over the events of the past month. He said:
I feel vindicated again, but I also feel upset that the media and the police — they knew I was innocent — they knew I was the victim, why did they arrest me and detain me on [Grievous Bodily Harm] Section 18 and give the media the opportunity to pump those headlines around the world. Why? They’d watched the CCTV, they knew I was the victim of an aggressive confrontation and a violent attack.
Read the full article here