Police are investigating footage which appears to show anti-migration activist Daniel Thomas repeatedly slashing an inflatable dinghy while a rescue worker was still onboard. Thomas, who is widely known as Danny Tommo, filmed himself following two boats in the English Channel on Tuesday afternoon after they had reportedly carried asylum seekers from France. Video shared online appears to show Thomas approaching one of the dinghies, which contained discarded life jackets, before using a blade to puncture its inflatable side several times. A rescue worker wearing orange high-visibility clothing could be seen standing on the craft as air began escaping from it. Thomas shouted at the worker to leave the dinghy before his own vessel moved away. The rescue worker was subsequently seen transferring onto a larger emergency boat positioned alongside. Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary has confirmed that enquiries into the incident are underway. No arrest relating specifically to the footage has yet been announced.
Migrant Boat Diverted to Dover
The incident followed a prolonged rescue operation involving a small boat carrying around 60 people across the Channel. French authorities said those onboard had spent more than 33 hours at sea in dangerous conditions but had declined French assistance while attempting to reach the United Kingdom. British rescue vessels were later deployed to collect the passengers. The group was initially expected to be brought to Gosport, where anti-migration demonstrators had gathered. The rescue vessel instead travelled east along the coast and arrived in Dover shortly after 12.30am on Wednesday.
Six Arrests During Gosport Protest
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary made six arrests following disorder connected with the protest in Gosport on Tuesday evening. The reported offences included assaulting an emergency worker and aggravated trespass. Those arrests are separate from the police enquiries into the footage showing the dinghy being damaged. Several campaign groups condemned Thomas’s actions, describing the incident as dangerous because a rescue worker remained on the inflatable vessel when it was punctured. Thomas is the founder of the anti-migration group Patriot Platform and has been involved in demonstrations in Portsmouth and Dover. He regularly broadcasts his activities online. He was previously jailed for two years in 2016 after being convicted of attempted kidnapping following an incident in which he and two other men went to a property armed with knives. Police enquiries into the Channel incident remain ongoing.
Originally published by UKNIP.
