Jewish Defence League leader found guilty of assault

The Jewish Chronicle Online/March 2, 2015

By Rosa Doherty

The leader of the UK branch of the Jewish Defence League has been found guilty of assaulting two people at a pro-Palestinian event in Haringey.

Roberta Moore, 43, was convicted at Highbury Corner Magistrates Court of two assaults and possession of an offensive weapon.

Her co-defendant Robert De Jonge, 36, was found guilty of assault.

The attack took place last year, at the Tottenham Palestine Literature Festival after Arab pro-Israel activist, Orim Shimshon, staged a protest during a collection of talks on the Balfour Declaration.
Moore discharged a dye spray in the face of retired British Library professor and organiser of the festival, Andy Simons before doing the same to festival book-seller Simon Assaf.

Mr Simons, 62, who was chairing the talks, told the court how he was punched in the face by De Jonge.

He said he suffered concussion after being struck so hard his glasses fell to the floor. He said he was now “hesitant of doing Palestinian work in public”.

Judge Julia Newton found Moore guilty of all charges, ruling she had not used the spray in “self defence” as claimed.

The dye spray was ruled by the judge to have caused “harm” after Moore discharged it point-blank at Mr Simons’s face.
Moore and De Jonge will be sentenced on March 23.

They are both subject to conditions of bail not to attend any event involving Haringey Justice for Palestinians.