By Ben Kerrigan-
Mr. Robinson revealed he wasted £100,000 from thousands of pounds from donations on gambling and lied in his book that he owned several properties.
Robinson revealed he had spent £100,000 on gambling in casinos and online and had wasted money on “drink, alcohol, partying” while receiving thousands of pounds in donations from supporters.
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In 2020, Robinson told the court, he received about £1,000 a month from supporters, but at times the figure was as high as £4,000.
The founder of the English Defence League, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, made the comment at the Royal Courts of Justice where he was giving evidence after losing a libel case about his outstanding debts. He was sued by Jamal Hijazi when the 15-year-old was assaulted at Almondbury Community School in Huddersfield.
The 39-year-old was ordered to pay damages to Syrian teenager Jamal Hijazi after defaming him online. After the teen was attacked at Almondbury School in Huddersfield, Robinson posted two videos on Facebook claiming Hijazi was “not innocent and he violently attacks young English girls in his school”.
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In July last year, Robinson was ordered to pay Hijazi £100,000. Months earlier Robinson had declared himself bankrupt.
Robinson revealed he had spent £100,000 on gambling in casinos and online and had wasted money on “drink, alcohol, partying” while receiving thousands of pounds in donations from supporters.
In 2020, Robinson told the court, he received about £1,000 a month from supporters, but at times the figure was as high as £4,000.
According to a report by the BBC, Robinson was asked about a £323,000 debt he owed Bedfordshire businessman Christopher Johnson.
He told the court that Johnson had “a lot of cash” and it “wasn’t realistic” that he could pay him back.
Speaking about the lead-up to his March 2021 bankruptcy, Robinson said he was a “total mess” and had “suffered a total mental breakdown for two or three years”, the broadcaster reported.
“I owe loads of money. Can’t get out of it,” Robinson told the court, adding that at times he was “sofa surfing” between seven different addresses.
Robinson told the court he was not currently living in the UK and only returned when he was working.
Asked about a claim in his 2009 book Enemy of the State that he owned seven properties, but six of them were in his wife’s name, he said: “I like to give off that I am a successful man when I am not.”
The incident, which happened in October 2018 was filmed and shortly after the video went viral, Robinson claimed in two Facebook videos that Mr Hijazi was “not innocent and he violently attacks young English girls in his school.”
The clips were viewed by nearly a million people and 39-year-old Robinson also claimed Mr Hijazi “beat a girl black and blue” and “threatened to stab” another boy at his school. Both allegations were found to be false last summer.
Following a pre-trial hearing in the libel case in November 2020, Robinson was ordered to pay £43,293 in legal costs. However, the sum was not paid, so Mr Hijazi’s lawyers successfully applied for an order requiring Robinson to return to court to answer questions about his finances.
The English Defence League (EDL) founder failed to attend court to be questioned in March 2022 but appeared at a hearing in London on Thursday to answer questions.
During the questioning, Robinson told the court that two years before declaring bankruptcy, he spent around £100,000 on gambling in casinos.
He said: “I sold a property, received the money and I spent it,” Robinson also claimed he owed £160,000 to HM Revenue and Customs but later said this was an estimate. Mr Hijzai’s barrister Ian Helme said: “You don’t know, you don’t care. You’re putting numbers here and you don’t know if they’re accurate,”
Robinson later said: “I’ve always been a disaster with paperwork and finance from day dot.” After questions about his tax returns, Robinson told the High Court that he had not contacted either his accountant or HMRC prior to Thursday’s hearing.
Discussing his accountant, Robinson said: “He’s not my best mate, I owe him money…I haven’t spoken to him.”
He was then quizzed over a claim he made in his book Enemy Of The State that when the EDL was founded in 2009, there were seven properties in his or his then-wife’s name.
Robinson said: “I had a ghost-writer that helped me with the book. I like to give off the impression that I’m a successful man even when I’m not.”
He later accepted that there were not in fact seven properties. He shrugged when asked if the book was untrue, saying he had written it years ago.
Robinson later told the court he previously received a salary while working for Rebel Media, a Canadian site. He then admitted he now works for a website called Urban Scoop.
When asked about the money he was paid by the site, Robinson said: “You want the truth? I haven’t received any money recently because they have not got any, I think they are borrowing money.”
At a hearing last month, Robinson told the High Court he had missed the March hearing because of mental health issues caused by being harassed.
On Thursday, he said he had also suffered a mental breakdown prior to his bankruptcy, telling the court: “I was a mess, a total mess, a total mess suffering from PTSD.”
He also said he had struggled to get a bank account and now used an online company he refused to name.
“I’ve been closed by NatWest, I’ve been closed by HSBC…Lloyds closed me down as well.”
Following Mr Hijazi’s successful libel claim, Mr Justice Nicklin ordered Robinson to pay him damages of £100,000 and his legal costs.
After failing to attend the hearing in March, Robinson will now have to return to court again in August to decide whether he had committed a contempt of court.
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