A UK judge is set to sentence an 18-year-old teenager on Thursday for the brutal murders of three young girls in a stabbing spree last year, which led to the country’s worst riots in over a decade.
Axel Rudakubana, 18, pleaded guilty earlier this week to the killings, as well as to 10 counts of attempted murder and possessing a blade, following the incident at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport, northwest England. He also admitted to producing the biological toxin ricin and possessing an Al-Qaeda training manual.
Judge Julian Goose is scheduled to sentence Rudakubana at Liverpool Crown Court at 11:00am (1100 GMT) after his guilty plea on Monday ended his upcoming trial. The judge has indicated that the teenager faces a lengthy custodial sentence. Rudakubana has displayed uncooperative behavior during previous court appearances, including refusing to speak and declining to stand in court, where he muttered “guilty” to each of the charges.
Family members of the victims are expected to attend the sentencing hearing.
Rudakubana’s violent rampage in July 2024 shocked the UK, triggering anti-immigrant riots in multiple towns and cities across England and Northern Ireland. Misinformation, falsely claiming that a Muslim asylum seeker was responsible, fueled the unrest.
In reality, Rudakubana was born in Cardiff to parents of Rwandan origin and lived in Banks, a village near Southport. His parents, both ethnic Tutsis, arrived in the UK after the 1994 Rwandan genocide, according to UK media.
Despite the violence, the attack has not been treated as a terrorist incident, and Rudakubana has not faced terrorism charges, a decision that has drawn criticism from some quarters.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Tuesday that he would update counterterrorism laws if needed to address what he described as the “new threat” of individuals committing extreme violence for its own sake.
Interior Minister Yvette Cooper has also announced a public inquiry into how police, courts, and welfare services failed to identify the risk Rudakubana posed.
Tragic Loss
Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, were killed during the attack in Southport on July 29, 2024. Ten others, including eight children, were injured in what remains one of the UK’s worst mass stabbings in recent history.
The riots linked to the killings lasted nearly a week. Rioters targeted police, shops, hotels housing asylum seekers, and mosques. Hundreds were arrested and charged in connection to the unrest.
Authorities have pointed to far-right agitators who fueled the violence, partly by spreading misinformation about the attacker.
Emerging Details
Following Rudakubana’s guilty plea and the lifting of court reporting restrictions, new details have surfaced about his background. He had been referred three times to the government’s anti-extremism scheme, Prevent, due to concerns about his violent tendencies. Prevent aims to prevent individuals from becoming involved in terrorism or violent extremism.
Rudakubana had also been excluded from school, and reports suggest he began carrying a knife at age 13 after being bullied. Social workers reportedly required police escorts when visiting his family home because of the perceived danger he posed.
Authorities had long been aware of his interest in atrocities and mass murders, including finding research on these topics conducted on a school computer. Starmer condemned the decision not to intervene through Prevent, calling it “clearly wrong.”
Cooper has pledged to introduce stronger measures to combat online knife sales, calling it “a total disgrace” that Rudakubana was able to purchase a knife from Amazon, despite being 17 and having a prior conviction.
