Prominent British activist and English Defence League co-founder Tommy Robinson (real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon) has admitted to spending thousands of pounds on gambling, as he testified to the court about the state of his finances.
This development comes after Robinson was ordered by the court to pay damages of £100,000 to Jamal Hijazi, a young refugee from Syria who won a libel case against him in 2021, as well as Hijazi’s legal costs that were “thought to be around £500,000”, as MailOnline put it.
As Robinson told the High Court, he spent around £100,000 on gambling, largely at casinos, during a two-year period prior to him declaring bankruptcy, which happened last year.
“I sold a property, received the money and I spent it”, he said.
The media outlet also points out that Robinson admitted to spending money on “drink, alcohol, partying” while receiving financial donations from supporters.
“I've always been a disaster with paperwork and finance from day dot”, Robinson reportedly remarked.
The activist made his court appearance comes after he failed to pay the £43,293 in legal costs and Hijazi's lawyers applied for an order to have Robinson answer questions about his finances.
21 August 2021, 12:11 GMT
Hijazi sued Robinson for libel after the former was assaulted at Almondbury Community School in Huddersfield in October 2018, while the latter made false claims on social media that Hijazi was “not innocent and he violently attacks young English girls in his school”.