Danny Tommo pleads not guilty over slashed Channel dinghy

Basingstoke, England — Daniel Thomas, an anti-migrant activist known to supporters as Danny Tommo, pleaded not guilty to criminal damage and to failing to disclose the PIN to his phone during a brief appearance at Basingstoke Magistrates' Court in Hampshire.

The 37-year-old appeared by videolink. He was remanded in custody until a Sept. 29 hearing at Portsmouth Crown Court and requested a crown court trial.

The arrest came after a video appeared to show him slashing at a dinghy in the English Channel with an emergency responder on board. The court heard that a crew member was aboard the boat, which was heard leaking air.

Prosecutor Kevin Lucie, outlining the criminal damage charge, said Thomas slashed an adrift boat with a knife and told those aboard: "You are on English territory. This is England. This is not France any more."

Hampshire police previously said an arrest had been made after a "boat that had an emergency responder on board" was damaged in the Channel on Tuesday.

Far-right activist Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, also known as Tommy Robinson, was among those in the public gallery. Some supporters also gathered outside the court, where police were positioned.

The hearing followed a demonstration Thursday evening outside a police investigation center in Basingstoke, where several hundred people gathered believing Thomas was inside. The protest began shortly before 6:30 p.m. BST and appeared peaceful, with protesters standing on the road outside the building and chanting "free DT."

The crowd began to disperse at about 9:45 p.m. after learning of the charges against Thomas.

The case is the latest flashpoint in Britain's deeply polarized debate over migrants arriving in small boats across the English Channel. It also shows how rapidly such allegations can become a rallying point for activists and their opponents, with the next court date likely to draw further scrutiny.

HM Courts