Controversial far right activist Tommy Robinson has received more than £20,000 of donations in Bitcoin as part of a campaign to free him from jail.
The former English Defence League (EDL) was last week released from prison on bail after his conviction for contempt of court was quashed by three judges at the Court of Appeal in London.
He had been handed a 13-month sentence after filming people in a criminal trial at Leeds Crown Court, that was subject to reporting restrictions, and broadcasting the footage on social media. The video was watched 250,000 times within hours of being posted as a Facebook Live.
When approached by reporters, Robinson said: “All the British media do is lie. I have a lot to say but nothing to you. I want to thank the British public for all their support.”
In his written judgement, Lord Burnett noted: “We are satisfied that the finding of contempt made in Leeds following a fundamentally flawed process, in what we recognise were difficult and unusual circumstances, cannot stand. We will direct that the matter be reheard before a different judge.”
Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley Lennon, will attend the Old Bailey for the hearing “as soon as reasonably possible”. The ‘Free Tommy Robinson’ campaign saw the majority of Bitcoin donations coming in the week after he was imprisoned on 25th May, including one payment of £5,500, as various right wing media outlets and alt right figures depicted him as a defender of free speech.
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