Matt Hancock: Anti-vax protester guilty of harassing former health secretary

An anti-vaccine protester who accused former Health Secretary Matt Hancock of murdering people during the pandemic has been found guilty of harassment.

Geza Tarjanyi, 62, of Leyland in Lancashire, shoulder-barged and "shouted ridiculous conspiracy theories" at the MP, a court heard.

The judge said Tarjanyi "deliberately intimidated and harassed" the MP.

Tarjanyi was ordered not to approach or contact Mr Hancock for three years.

The former DJ and children's entertainer was also given an eight-week prison sentence suspended for two years, and must complete 200 hours of unpaid work and pay costs of £930 plus a surcharge of £128.

Mr Hancock said he was "relieved at the verdict".

In a victim impact statement read to the court, he said: "I felt directly targeted.

"I feel less comfortable using public transport now.

"My security is under review."

The incidents took place near Parliament in London on 19 January and on a tube train on 24 January.

Mr Hancock previously told Westminster Magistrates' Court he felt "intimidated" when Tarjanyi followed him through Westminster Underground station and on to a tube train.

He said he feared being pushed down an escalator and tried to get Transport for London staff to intervene but Tarjanyi began harassing "anybody who was going to come to my aid".

He told the court Tarjanyi then got onto a tube train with him and accused him of murdering "millions of people".

Tarjanyi's mobile phone footage of the second incident, played to the court, showed him calling Mr Hancock a "murderous scumbag" and saying lockdown amounted to the harassment of the country due to his "lies and deceit".

Mr Hancock said he feared Tarjanyi was willing to commit a crime, alleging the defendant had told him he "wanted to go to court".

Geza Tarjanyi was found to have harassed Matt Hancock on two occasions

During the other incident, Mr Hancock, along with a member of his staff, passed an anti-vaccine protest near Parliament, when Tarjanyi filmed him, asked why he had "killed so many people" and shoulder-barged him during a five-minute interaction.

Tarjanyi denied the charge of harassment without violence and described the claims as "laughable".

He repeatedly denied following Mr Hancock and told the court he was "interviewing him".

Senior district judge Paul Goldspring said Tarjanyi "wanted a day in court to question Mr Hancock".

Matt Hancock regularly led government news conferences during the Covid pandemic

Responding to the verdict, Mr Hancock said: "We in the UK pride ourselves as a global symbol of democracy, built around respectful debate to build a more inclusive and harmonious society. Violence against anyone for their political beliefs is unacceptable."I would like to thank the CPS, Transport for London and the British Transport Police who have been fantastic throughout."

The MP for West Suffolk currently sits as an independent and announced last year he would not seek re-election.

He was suspended as a Conservative MP last year after signing up for the ITV reality show I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here, which saw him trade Westminster for the Australian jungle.

The 44-year-old became a household name in spring 2020, at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, when he was a key figure overseeing lockdown restrictions and the subsequent vaccine rollout.

He was forced to resign from his job the following year, after images emerged showing him kissing one of his advisers, who later became his partner.

He admitted breaking social distancing guidance.