Recently released Tommy Robinson claims he was ‘mentally tortured’ in prison complaining of no TV, inability to eat prison food and being moved to facility with larger Muslims population.
Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, the former leader of the English Defence League (EDL) got a 13 month sentence in May for contempt of court. On Wednesday, the defense team for the darling of the British and international right successfully appealed the sentence and he was released on bail pending a retrial.
In several prison complaint forms posted to his Facebook page on Friday, Robinson’s claims of mistreatment included being moved from a prison where only 7% of inmates were Muslim to one where a third of them are; being locked up for 23 hours a day “for his own protection,”; and accused prison authorities of “punishing” him with no TV access in his cell.
“I’d like to be given a TV as I feel I am being mentally tortured,” he wrote.
Another complaint form saw him request “extra spends” in order to buy more food as paranoia over what people preparing his meals might do to it had resulted in him losing weight as he was only able to eat canned food.
“This would make up a bit for being held in isolation,” Robinson said.
The prison service has rejected the claims, with a spokesperson saying “Mr Yaxley-Lennon was treated with the same fairness we aim to show all prisoners.”
It added that claims of being held in solitary confinement were “totally false.”
Since his release, Robinson has refused to talk to mainstream media in the UK, accusing a BBC reporter asking for comment upon his release that “all you do is lie.”
Speaking to Fox News’ Tucker Carlson on Friday, Robinson documented his mistreatment further, saying that he had to keep his windows and doors closed during the recent spell of hot weather for fear of having other prisoners spit or throw excrement into his cell.
“I was supposed to be in Her Majesty’s Prison Service, not Guantanamo Bay,” he said.
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His Guantanamo Bay claim has received derision online, with British ex-Guantanamo prisoner and activist Moazzam Begg accusing Robinson of not being able to “handle a few weeks inside.”
During his Fox interview, Robinson also disclosed a never-mentioned-before Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) obtained from a previous five-month spell in solitary confinement when he was in prison in 2012.
In October 2012 Robinson was arrested for illegally entering the United States under a false passport while concealing a previous drug conviction.
After spending Christmas in jail, he was convicted and sentenced to 10 months in January 2013.
Other convictions include assault, participation in mass brawls and mortgage fraud.
Since his most recent incarceration, he has seen a swelling in support both within the UK and from the US and European political right. He has also received more than £20,000 in Bitcoin donations since he was jailed in May.
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