Southport killer Axel Rudakubana jailed for minimum of 52 years for murder of three girls at a dance class in 2024 – live | Southport attack

Some more statements from the victims’ families. The children were given letters so they could be referenced without publicly identifying them.

From the family of Child O:

We are glad that the guilty plea was announced to stop the anguish for all the families. We are looking forward to justice being done. We would like to thank the emergency services and all the other organisations and individuals that have offered support and kindness throughout this tragic time.

From the family of Child P:

The sights and sounds that day were so traumatic to all, the families, the neighbours, the services and of course our children. This will forever be with us and our thoughts will remain with the families of Alice, Bebe and Elsie who although our daughter didn’t know, now thinks and prays for them often.

From the family of Child Q:

Although the horrific events will always stay with us, we now hope to be able to move forward as a family to enjoy happier times. We would like to like to thank everyone for the love and support we have received during this difficult time.

From the family of Child U:

Horrific incidents like this should unite society and not cause a divide amongst them, and remind everyone that there is more good than bad in the world.

From the family of Children V and W, who are siblings:

Following the horrific events at the Hart Space on July 29th, the bravery and strength that our two daughters have shown has kept us going, in stark contrast to the cowardice displayed by Axel Rudakubana.

We will continue to support and guide them through their psychological recovery, love them unconditionally and continue to grow stronger as a family.

We welcome the public enquiry and wish to understand how the failings that have been discovered will be addressed.

From the family of Child X:

Whilst I’m glad we haven’t had to sit through the pain of a trial and reliving that awful day, what happened that day will stay with us forever. We’d like to thank everyone who has helped and supported those of us effected by the tragedy.

The family of another child seriously injured, who survived the attack, said:

First and foremost, we would like to send our love, thoughts and condolences to the families and loved ones of Alice, Bebe, Elsie Dot and indeed the rest of the families forever touched by the attack on the 29th of July 2024.

We recognise that we are extremely fortunate to have our little princess with us, and we are immensely proud of her and the bravery, courage, and resilience she has shown, both on the day of the attack and since, as she takes the first steps on the long road to recovery.

We would like to thank all the emergency services involved with all the victims and families on the day, with special thanks reserved for the police officer who personally took vigilant care of our daughter, the air ambulance team, and hospital staff who continue to support and contribute to the care of the girls.

We would also like to thank the residents of Hart Street, in particular the two families who gave our daughter shelter in their homes, in the immediate aftermath of this unprecedented and hideous attack. Your kindness and compassion will never be forgotten.

We welcome the guilty verdict but also realise this is only the first step on the road to justice. We welcome the public inquiry and believe that true justice can only be achieved by preventing anything like this from happening again. We ask for privacy and respect, as we focus on repairing the harm caused, this incident will not define us as a family, and we are confident our daughter will continue to grow in strength as we rebuild our lives.

Statements responding to the sentence have been released by some of the families of the victims.

The family of two siblings injured in the attack said:

Today our family welcome the sentence imposed on that monster, however nothing will ever reverse the heartbreaking events of that day. Our children have been exposed to scenes that no one should ever see and caused unimaginable pain and heartache for us all. Alice, Bebe, Elsie and their families remain in our thoughts always.

We would like to thank Merseyside Police and the CPS for bringing justice and for the emergency services who attended the scene and medical staff who treated our girls with such compassion. We would also like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the public for all of their support and well wishes since that tragic day.

For now, we need time to reflect and process the events of the past few months and ask for privacy during this time. We will come forwards and speak when we feel ready.

The children’s charity, the NSPCC has issued a statement following the sentencing from Chris Sherwood, its chief executive.

During the hearing, the court heard how Rudakubana, then aged 15, had contacted councillors at its help centre for children, Childline, confessing that he was taking a knife to school. The charity contacted the police.

The Southport attack was devastating for the local community and the country as a whole. Our thoughts remain with all those impacted by this appalling act of violence, and in particular with the families of the three little girls who so tragically lost their lives.

Now the court case has concluded it is vital the public inquiry moves forward quickly to uncover exactly what happened and why. There are many difficult questions that need to be addressed so that everything possible is done to prevent something so terrible and heartbreaking from happening again.

The NSPCC stands ready to support in any way we can. Childline is also here around the clock, both online and over the phone, for any child or young person across the UK who is struggling to process what happened in Southport and the aftermath.

What happens next?

On Monday, ahead of the sentencing, the prime minister said a public inquiry would be held into the attack. Ordering the inquiry, Keir Starmer said the country had “failed in its duty” to protect the children who became victims.

It followed revelations in the Guardian that Rudakubana had previously been referred three times to Prevent, the government’s anti-radicalisation scheme.

The government will appoint a chair of the inquiry, who will begin gathering evidence.

Now that the investigation is concluded, inquests will also be held into the deaths of the three girls. These are public hearings, which will be reported on by the media, which aim to understand the circumstances around a death, usually including whether there was an opportunity to prevent it.

Rudakubana is also entitled to appeal the sentence handed out today, if his lawyers can find a legal argument as to why his sentence was too harsh.

There is also an avenue for the victims to appeal if they think the sentence was too lenient.

Merseyside police has asked members of the public not to share social media posts detailing the injuries the children suffered at the hands of Rudakubana.

Here is the Guardian’s full report on the sentencing, written by our north of England editor Josh Halliday, who is in court and has covered this case from the day the attack happened.

The Crown Prosecution Service said the victims had shown “tremendous dignity and composure in the face of unbelievable horror”.

Sarah Hammond, chief crown prosecutor of CPS Mersey-Cheshire, said:

Many of our cases have tragedy, difficulty and trauma, but this case is one of the most harrowing that I, as the Chief Crown Prosecutor for this area, have ever come across.

Three beautiful girls – Elsie Dot Stancombe, Bebe King, and Alice da Silva Aguiar lost their lives on a day that should have been filled with happiness. When Rudakubana entered the room, they were singing and making friendship bracelets.

Axel Rudakubana is a murderer, and displayed unrelenting savagery as he carried out a meticulously planned rampage of murder and violence. His purpose was to kill and he targeted the youngest, most vulnerable, no doubt in order to spread the greatest level of fear and outrage, which he did.

Though he pleaded guilty to the charges, she said Rudakubana “has never expressed any remorse, only cowardice in his refusal to face the families whose lives he has forever changed”.

This has been an extremely difficult case for the prosecution team. They have had to work through some harrowing footage and evidence. I would like to thank them for their perseverance and determination to achieve justice for the victims and their families.

This sentencing brings to an end this case, but the events of that day will leave a tragic legacy that will unfortunately endure for many years.

The sentences break down as:

Counts 1-3, the murder charges: 52 years

Counts 4-11, some of the attempted murder charges: 18 years

Counts 12 and 13, the other attempted murder charges: 16 years

Count 14-16, the knife, production of ricin and terror manual charges: 18 months

The charges from counts 4 to 16 are to be served concurrently, which gives a custodial sentence of 52 years.

He will be 70 years old before he is eligible for parole.

Southport killer Axel Rudakubana sentenced to minimum of 52 years for murder of three girls at a dance class in 2024

Beyond his autism, Rudakubana had not shown any associated learning disabilities.

The guilty pleas allow a reduction in his sentence, though only small because it came at such a late moment.

He is a “dangerous offender”, the judge says, adding further sentences for the other charges.

Considering the sentence, Mr Justice Goose is not allowed to hand him a whole life order, which he would have done if he was 18 at the time of the attack.

He said he plans to hand down a sentence that means he will spend almost all of his life in prison and it will be for a parole board to decide whether he is ever safe to be released.

From a starting point of 27 years for the murders, he has taken into account the other charges, the young age of the girls and the “substantial” premeditation and planning.

He said Rudakubana had shown a lack of remorse but “lack of remorse is not an aggravating factor.”

Mr Justice Goose said the statements read in court were “deeply moving” and that the damage caused to the victims was “profound and permanent”.

The comments he made after he was arrested were “deeply disturbing”.

The judge talks about the evidence found in Rudakubana’s house. “I am satisfied for some time he had planned to kill as many people as he could.”

He said he believed if Rudakubana had not managed to carry out the attack he would have used the ricin.

The attack, he said, was “equivalent” of a terror attack, even though it did not legally fit the definition of terrorism because it did not have a political, religious, racial or ideological cause. Whether his motivation was terrorism “misses the point”.

Mr Justice Goose said Rudakubana was “determined to disrupt the proceedings so he did not have to face the victims” of his crimes.

He begins to explain the facts of the case.

He said Rudakubana attended the Taylor Swift dance class to inflict “horrific, extreme violence” on the children there.

“In his mind was the intention to murder as many of them as he physically could. He wanted to try and carry out mass murder of innocent, happy young girls and over about 15 minutes he savagely killed three of them and attempted to kill eight more.”

He described it as “extreme violence of the utmost and exceptionally high seriousness that is difficult to comprehend”.

He said he believed had Rudakubana been able to, “he would have killed each and every child”.

He then begins to outline in detail the horrendous injuries inflicted during his sickening attack on the little girls.

Rudakubana has decided not to come up from the cells to be sentenced.

The judge said he will proceed in his absence.

Rudakubana’s barrister Stanley Reiz KC is presenting mitigating factors, which he admits are limited.

“There is very little that the defendant has done that can be said could be to his credit,” he says.

One mitigating factor, he said, was seeking help via Childline at the age of 15, though he did this anonymously.

Another one is his age. Reiz says he also “lacked maturity for his age”. Examples of this were the “candor” about his “deviant thoughts” that he told to police and school staff about wanting to kill people.

These demonstrated a “level of maturity that fell far beyond his chronological age of 15 and demonstrated a startling lack of empathy”.

His behaviour is “childlike” and that he rebels when he is asked to do something.

He points to Rudakubana yelling out in the courtroom earlier in the day, and said a normal 18-year old would “realise he would not succeed in controlling anything with his petulant behaviour”.

Reiz says due to his age, there is a “prospect of rehabilitation” and “there still exists at least the possibility… that he will recognise the gravity of what he has done”.

He asks for the shortest minimum term the judge feels able to hand down.

The mitigation is extremely short.

A reminder that there are reporting restrictions in place to protect the identities of the surviving children.

Their names, ages and other identifying details – such as their parents’ names – cannot be published.