Tommy Robinson has taken a police force to court over claims he was harassed at pub

Mr Robinson, appearing in court under his real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, said he had taken his children to see Luton Town play away against Cambridge United.

The 36-year-old former leader of the English Defence League (EDL) was at a pub after the match in August 2016 when officers used a dispersal order.

He told Peterborough County Court he felt he was "targeted by police because of my beliefs", but an officer on duty that day said Mr Yaxley-Lennon was among a group of Luton fans in the pub who were identified by police as "risk" supporters.

Cambridgeshire Live reported that Mr Yaxley-Lennon said in evidence: "I feel I was approached and targeted by police because of my beliefs.

"I felt that I was just ejected from the city."

He said he found the incident "humiliating and degrading" and that his children were crying as they were followed by officers to the railway station.

Inspector Matthew Johnson of Cambridgeshire Police told the court he had received information from police spotters who had been following Luton Town fans after the football match.

He said he was told that Mr Yaxley-Lennon was with a group of "risk" fans.

"I was advised he was upstairs in the pub and I assumed wrongly that the children had all gone off with one of the other adults," he said.

He continued: "This wasn't about Mr Robinson, Mr Yaxley-Lennon, this was about the group in the pub."

He said he "made a decision that the risk group had to be removed from the pub" and that included Mr Yaxley-Lennon.

He described the pub as "not the type of place you take kids after a football match".

Alison Gurden, for Mr Yaxley-Lennon, asked Mr Johnson if he had been advised that Mr Yaxley-Lennon was drinking water.

"No, I wasn't advised he was drinking water," he said, adding that he "knew" others in the group were drinking alcohol.

The case, listed for four days, continues.