Axel Rudakubana has pleaded guilty to murdering three young girls and attempting to murder 10 others at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class, in the worst targeted attack on children in Britain since the Dunblane massacre.
Rudakubana, who was 17 at the time of the stabbings in Southport last summer, also pleaded guilty to possessing terrorist material and producing the toxin ricin.
He appeared in the dock at Liverpool crown court on the day his trial was due to begin.
Wearing a blue Covid-style face mask, Rudakubana had refused to confirm his identity or to stand when asked by the judge before his barrister, Stanley Reiz KC, asked to approach the dock.
After a short discussion between the defendant and his barrister, Reiz asked for the indictment to be put to Rudakubana again. He then pleaded guilty to all the charges in a barely audible voice.
The judge, Mr Justice Goose, said he intended to sentence the 18-year-old on Thursday when he would be given a life term.
After entering the guilty pleas, Rudakubana sat hunched forward with his head bowed. He was flanked in the dock by four security officers and an intermediary, who confirmed that he could hear proceedings.
The dramatic events stunned the assembled barristers, police officers, detectives and prosecutors in the small courtroom.
Rudakubana killed Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven. He also admitted the attempted murders of a further eight children and two adults.
The teenager took a taxi on 29 July to the Hart Space, a community centre in Southport about 5 miles from his home. He launched a frenzied knife attack at the dance class that was taking place during the first week of the school holidays.
The attack left families and the local community devastated, and led to riots that broke out across the country in the aftermath.
After Rudakubana had entered his pleas, Goose said: “I am conscious of the fact the families are not here today. You have now pleaded guilty to this indictment and to each of the charges upon it.
“You will understand it is inevitable the sentence to be imposed upon you will mean a life sentence equivalent will be imposed upon you. I will have to complete the sentencing process on that occasion.”
Deanna Heer KC, prosecuting, confirmed the families had not attended court on Monday because it had been assumed the trial would open on Tuesday.
The judge said he extended his apologies to the families that they had not been able to hear Rudakubana enter his pleas.
Originally protected by an anonymity order because he was a minor at the time of the attack, a judge ruled that Rudakubana could be identified shortly before his 18th birthday.
Announcing the further charges after a “lengthy and complex” investigation, Merseyside police said ricin had been discovered at Rudakubana’s home in the village of Banks, near Southport, days after the attack.
Rudakubana, born in Cardiff to Rwandan parents, was also found to have a pdf file titled Military Studies in the Jihad Against the Tyrants: The al-Qaida Training Manual. He was charged with possessing information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism.
The chief constable Serena Kennedy said no evidence of the poison was found at Hart Space, and that counter-terrorism police had “not declared the events of 29 July as a terrorist incident”.
Ursula Doyle, the deputy chief crown prosecutor for Merseyside, said Rudakubana had a “sickening and sustained interest in death and violence and shown no sign of remorse … This was an unspeakable attack – one which left an enduring mark on our community and the nation for its savagery and senselessness.
“At the start of the school holidays, a day which should have been one of carefree innocence; of children enjoying a dance workshop and making friendship bracelets, became a scene of the darkest horror as Axel Rudakubana carried out his meticulously planned rampage.”
After the killings, the victims’ families paid tribute to the three girls. Alice’s parents, Sergio and Alexandra, said she was “our perfect dream child”.
They said in a tribute at her funeral service. “A good girl, with strong values and kind nature. A lover of animals and an environmentalist in the making. You moved our world with your confidence and empathy. Playful, energetic, friendly and always so respectful.”
Lauren and Ben King said Bebe had been “taken from us in an unimaginable act of violence that has left our hearts broken beyond repair.
“Our beloved Bebe, only six years old, was full of joy, light and love, and she will always remain in our hearts as the sweet, kind and spirited girl we adore.”
Their older daughter Genie saw the attack but managed to escape. “She has shown such incredible strength and courage, and we are so proud of her,” her parents said.
Elsie’s parents, Jenni and David, said their daughter was a “devoted Swiftie” who “brought light, love and joy to so many lives”.
“Elsie spent every day just simply enjoying life with determination, persistence, love and kindness,” they said. “Elsie was an amazing little girl. She had the ability to light up any room that she entered, she was truly unforgettable.”
The other children injured in the attack cannot be named for legal reasons.
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