A teenager who attacked a children’s dance class in Southport, England, with a knife last summer, killing three girls and injuring 10 others, was sentenced Thursday to a minimum of 52 years in prison. was sentenced to life imprisonment.
The attacker, Axel Rudakubana, 18, pleaded guilty earlier this week. He refused to attend the sentencing hearing after the judge ordered him removed from the courtroom following repeated verbal abuse earlier in the day.
Judge Julian Goose, who presided over the case, said: “The harm that Rudakbana caused to families, children and communities is profound and lasting.” “This was a very extreme act of violence, a very serious act, and it is difficult to understand why this was done.”
The judge could not sentence him to life imprisonment (with the condition that the perpetrator may never be released on parole). Because he was only 17 years old at the time of the fatal attack. However, according to the sentence, Rudakubana must serve a minimum of 52 years before being eligible for parole, and the judge added that it was unlikely he would be released.
Judge Goose said Mr Rudakubana was “determined to disrupt the hearing” so that he did not have to meet the victim’s family.
Mr Rudakbana appeared in Liverpool court on Thursday morning wearing a gray sweatsuit with his mouth and nose covered by a blue medical mask. As the prosecutor began reading out the details of the case, Rudakubana shouted, “I don’t feel well and I need to talk to the paramedics.”
The judge noted that medical experts had examined Mr Rudakubana that morning and deemed him fit to attend the hearing. He continued to scream for several minutes.
Judge Goose said, “These proceedings are under my control, Mr. Rudakbana, not yours. Do you understand?” and said, “I will not let him interfere,” and Mr. Rudakbana. ordered to be removed from court.
Prosecutors read out details of the case against him, highlighting the horrific nature of the July 29 attack. “They targeted the youngest and most vulnerable people to perpetuate the highest level of crime,” prosecuting attorney Deanna Heer said. Fear and anger, and he succeeded in doing it. ”
She told the court that while Rudakubana was being arrested at the police station after the attack, she heard voices saying, “I’m glad those kids are dead” and “I’m so glad.”
Ms Heer described how she took a taxi to Heart Space, where a Taylor Swift-themed dance class for children aged 6 to 11 was sold out during the school summer holidays.
Surveillance footage shown in court and visual evidence taken from body cameras worn by police showed Mr Rudakubana arriving outside the dance studio, which was crowded with 26 children. .
He entered the building and rampaged through the room, stabbing Leanne Lucas, who was leading a class with several children. Moments later, screams can be heard on footage from an outdoor surveillance camera, after which children begin running from the building.
Some of them collapsed, covered in blood, and people around them helped them up.
Several people in the courtroom shed tears as the footage was played, while others were so overcome with emotion that they chose to leave.
Bebe King, 6, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, were seriously injured and died inside the building, police said. Alice da Silva Aguiar, 9, ran outside with the other children but collapsed immediately. She was taken to the hospital and died the next day. Eight other children and two adults were injured in the attack.
But amidst the horror there were also acts of heroism. The court heard how Mr Lucas, badly injured and bleeding after being stabbed in the back, pushed his children out the door and urged them to run for safety.
Heidi Riddle, another teacher who was in the dance studio at the time of the attack, also encouraged the children to run, and one girl ran to the bathroom. Mr. Riddle followed her inside, locked the door, and planted his foot on the door to protect them. She told the girl not to make any noise. Police then rescued them.
Marcin Taijong and Joel Verite, who were cleaning windows nearby, heard the commotion and rushed to the scene. Verite followed police into the building, picked up Bebe and carried her out of the building, screaming as she did so due to the severity of her injuries. Mr. Tyjon performed CPR on Alice outside in the parking lot.
In a statement read out in court, Ms Lucas said her injuries had affected her physically and mentally.
“Like the girls, I have scars that can’t be erased, scars that I can’t move on from,” she said, adding, “I know he was always trying to hurt vulnerable people. It’s hard to understand. For Alice, for Elsie, for Bebe, for Heidi, for the girls who survived, I will survive for you.”
Since Mr Rudakubana pleaded guilty, he has revealed a serious problem with his obsession with violence, as well as the fact that he had come to the attention of local authorities in the years before the attack in Southport, a town north of Liverpool. A portrait of the young man in his arms has emerged.
After the attack, disinformation about the identity of the perpetrators swirled in Britain on social media and messaging apps, sparking a series of anti-immigrant riots. False claims that he was an illegal immigrant or newly arrived asylum seeker were amplified by far-right agitators. Mr Rudakubana is a British national who was born in Wales to Rwandan parents.
At the age of 13 and 14, he was referred three times to Prevent, the UK’s counter-terrorism programme. The first time was in 2019 to investigate a school shooting during a class. Then, in 2021, he was featured for uploading an image of Libyan dictator Muammar el-Qaddafi to his Instagram account and for investigating the London Bridge terrorist attack. However, each time, those referrals were ultimately withdrawn because it was determined that they did not meet the criteria for intervention.
Police and prosecutors said there was no evidence to attribute him to any particular political or religious ideology. The content found on Rudakbana’s computers and tablets showed a longstanding interest in violence, murder and genocide.
The materials include a history of Nazi Germany, a report on contemporary violence in Sri Lanka, documents on the war in Chechnya, a book on clan cleansing in Somalia, an academic report on the Rwandan genocide, and It included papers on the punishments used against people. British plantations of the century.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Tuesday the attack was a sign of evolving domestic terrorism, with young people being radicalized by a “tsunami of violence that is freely available online”.
Rudakbana’s defense attorney, Stan Reyes, said at the sentencing hearing that his client had a “total lack of empathy,” but added, “The court has no psychiatric evidence that mental illness contributed to the defendant’s actions.” It doesn’t exist,” he added. ”
Rudakubana was also charged with manufacturing a biological toxin after investigators found ricin, a deadly chemical, under his bed and a charge of manufacturing a biological toxin “that could be useful to someone committing or preparing a criminal act.” He was also found guilty of “possessing information of a type.” Because he had downloaded a PDF file titled “Military Research in the Jihad Against Tyrants: Al-Qaeda Training Manual.”
The incident raised questions about how authorities missed opportunities to stop the violence before it started. The government announced it would conduct a public inquiry into the incident to better understand what happened and what needs to change. But the case also highlighted the problem that young people obsessed with extreme violence have access to online images and messages that fuel their obsession. Ultimately, though, authorities said the focus on sentencing day should remain on the victims.
“Today is about family,” Merseyside Police Chief Constable Selina Kennedy said in a statement. “This is a story about three beautiful girls, Elsie, Bebe and Alice, and all the victims who were not only injured but traumatized that day, and what this has done to them and what will happen next. It’s just a reminder of the impact it will continue to have on them for the rest of their lives. ”