Daniel ‘Tommo’ Thomas has today been denied bail having pleaded not guilty to criminal damage after he was filmed using a knife to slash a dinghy used by migrants to cross the Channel.

The 37-year-old also pleaded not guilty for not disclosing to police the PIN to his phone, under Section 53 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000. 

Thomas appeared at Basingstoke Magistrates’ Court on Friday morning and Tommy Robinson was in court to support his friend.

Robinson joined supporters outside following a protest outside a police station in the town last night.

He then went inside and sat in the public gallery, where a police officer was stationed. Another officer was positioned at the courtroom door.

Prosecutor Kevin Lucie, outlining the facts of the criminal damage charge, told the court that Thomas slashed an adrift boat with a knife and said: ‘You are on English territory. This is England. This is not France anymore.’

The court heard a crew member was on the boat whilst it was heard leaking air.

After pleading not guilty, Thomas stated he would like a crown court trial – but was refused bail. Thomas, a father-of-four and described as a professional roofer, was seen dabbing his eyes with a tissue at one point during the hearing.

The next hearing will take place in Portsmouth Crown Court next Tuesday, on September 29.

Tommy Robinson arrives outside Basingstoke Magistrates’ Court, Hampshire, to support Daniel Thomas, also known as Danny Tommo

Thomas has been charged with criminal damage and failing to disclose the PIN to his phone

Thomas, better known as Danny Tommo, is charged with criminal damage and failing to disclose the PIN for his phone after he was filmed slashing a boat in the English Channel while a rescue crew member was on board.

Last night hundreds of his followers marched on the police station where he is understood to be locked up after his arrest.

It followed the circulation of a video that allegedly shows Thomas stabbing at an inflatable dinghy that had carried migrants while a rescuer was on board.

Thomas had reportedly journeyed out to sea on Tuesday as it emerged that a boat containing 51 migrants was attempting to cross the English Channel. 

The group was later brought into Dover by the coast guard after 38 hours at sea.

News of the charges broke while 250 members of Thomas’s group – Patriot Platform – were massed outside the Police Investigation Centre in Basingstoke, Hampshire, where they arrived around 6.30pm.

They were applauded by the 50 or so protesters who had already gathered on the road, while members of the group began chanting ‘free DT’ and ‘Oh Danny Danny’.

Several police vans were parked outside the station where officers filmed protesters, a few of whom were sporting balaclavas and carrying the St George and Union flags.

As soon as the group arrived outside the police station, a spokesman urged the group to remove all face coverings – as a police drone kept watch overhead. 

Just after 8pm, the protesters paused for prayer relayed via a loudspeaker.

The crowd then broke into a rendition of ‘We want our Danny back’, before some members aimed laser pens at the police station.

The road was blocked by the crowd, though it parted briefly several times to allow traffic through. One motorist driving a white Chevrolet draped with a large Scotland flag beeped his horn in support and drew loud cheers.

Protesters began to disperse peacefully at around 9:30pm.

Around 250 followers of Danny Tommo gathered outside the Police Investigation Centre in Basingstoke on Thursday evening

Unlike previous gatherings, most of the attendees were not wearing face masks

The group gathered in answer to calls from a masked member of Patriot Platform – the group behind anti-migrant protests in Dover and Portsmouth – who urged followers to converge on Basingstoke Police Station in a social media post.

Fellow right-wing firebrand Tommy Robinson also called on supporters to travel to the Hampshire town via his X account – though said he could not himself attend because he was up north.

Thomas livestreamed part of his arrest on Wednesday night from a BP garage in an undisclosed location, and footage was later reposted showing him asking to ‘say goodbye to my kids’.

An officer then told Tommo to ‘step out of the car’ and explained the arrest, while a woman off-camera was heard saying: ‘The cameras are on, let go of the phone.’

After the video of Thomas emerged on Tuesday, hundreds of activists gathered in Gosport, where the migrants were initially expected to arrive.

Coaches called in to transport the migrants were moved under police escort down the coast to Dover, where the group of 51 were eventually brought ashore at around half past midnight on Wednesday morning. 

• A man was arrested for on suspicion or carrying a knife at the protest. He will appear in Basingstoke Magistrates’ Court today, September 25.