Canada: UK's Tommy Robinson Arrested for Alleged Immigration Breach

0:00

/1861

1×

Facts

• After giving a speech in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, earlier this week, right-wing British activist Tommy Robinson was arrested for what police said was an 'outstanding immigration warrant.'¹
• Robinson, whose legal name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, was arrested by 10 officers outside the Carriage House Hotel and Conference Centre, where he gave a speech as part of an event with Canadian news website Rebel News.²
• Robinson, who filmed the arrest, said that while he has since been released from custody, he was prevented from leaving Calgary and had his passport confiscated.¹
• This came as Robinson and Rebel News founder Ezra Levant were set to hold another event in Edmonton on Tuesday night and scheduled to speak in Toronto on Sunday.³
• Robinson, a former member of the British National Party and co-founder of the English Defence League, previously pleaded guilty in 2012 to using a friend's passport to enter the US, for which he was sentenced to 10 months in prison.⁴

Sources: ¹The Times of India, ²Inews.Co.Uk, ³Daily Mail and ⁴The Telegraph.

Narratives

• Left narrative, as provided by HOPE not hate. Tommy Robinson is an Islamophobic immigration hawk who ironically violated immigration laws. Given his criminal record, Robinson likely knew he would be arrested, which raises the question of whether this was a purposeful stunt aimed at raising money. His speaking tour has been an abject failure, so he certainly needed a way to raise funds from something other than ticket sales.
• Right narrative, as provided by Torontosun. If Robinson was some dangerous, high-profile fugitive, why would he be allowed into Canada in the first place? Given the timing of his arrest and the fact that 10 undercover officers were used to handcuff him, it appears this was a planned move aimed at publicly punishing a conservative speaker. The government certainly knows how to enforce immigration laws against voices it doesn't like.

Predictions