Around 200 protesters have gathered outside a police investigation centre in Basingstoke following the arrest of anti-migration activist Daniel Thomas, known as Danny Tommo.

The crowd gathered on Thursday evening, with protesters chanting “free DT” as Thomas remained in police custody following an incident involving a boat in the English Channel.

Thomas, 37, of no fixed abode, was arrested on Wednesday night after Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary received a report that a boat with an emergency responder on board had been damaged in the Channel.

Police said he was arrested on suspicion of destroying ships or fixed platforms or endangering their safety under Section 11 of the Aviation and Maritime Security Act 1990.

He was also arrested on suspicion of criminal damage, criminal damage with intent to endanger life and conduct endangering ships, structures or individuals under Section 58 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995.

The investigation follows the circulation of footage online which appears to show Thomas using a knife to damage an inflatable boat while an emergency responder was still on board.

Footage posted online appears to show Thomas cutting and stabbing the side of the vessel after a member of a rescue crew had boarded it.

Another video streamed online appears to capture Thomas’s subsequent arrest at a petrol station.

The latest protest follows separate scenes in Gosport on Tuesday, where hundreds of people gathered amid reports that a small boat crossing the English Channel could be brought ashore in Hampshire.

Six people were arrested during those events.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary subsequently confirmed three people had been charged with offences connected with the Gosport protest, including alleged assaults on emergency workers.

Two men from Salisbury, aged 19 and 36, who were arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass, were released on conditional bail while enquiries continue.

A 67-year-old Gosport man was also given a fixed penalty notice for careless driving and released on conditional bail after being arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker.

Thomas has not been charged in connection with the alleged Channel boat incident at this stage, and police enquiries remain ongoing.