Axel Rudakubana has pleaded guilty to the murders of three young girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport. Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and seven-year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe were murdered along with 10 others on 29 July last year. Rudakubana, who is 18 and from Banks in Lancashire, also pleaded guilty to attempted murder and two terror-related offences.
Defence lawyer Stan Reisz asked for the charges to be put to his client again and Rudakubana entered guilty pleas to all counts. The victims’ families were not in court to hear his change of plea. Before the trial could begin, the judge apologised to them, saying “we had all assumed” the trial would get under way in earnest on Tuesday. Rudakubana will be sentenced on Thursday.
Rudakubana was also accused of producing the biological toxin ricin and possessing an al-Qaeda training manual under the Terrorism Act. Last year, Merseyside Police said the stabbing attack was not declared a terrorist incident. As each charge was read out to him in court, Rudakubana, who had his face covered with a PPE mask, quietly said “guilty” to each count. Mr Justice Goose told him he would be sentenced on Thursday and it was “inevitable” that he would be given a life sentence. But Rudakubana cannot be sentenced to a whole-life term for his crimes because he is under the age of 21.
The attack took place during a summer holiday dance class for children at the Hart Centre in Southport. Rudakubana, who was 17 at the time, also stabbed eight other children along with yoga teacher Leanne Lucas, who was instructing the class, and businessman John Hayes, who was one of the first people on the scene. In the days following the murders, Alice was described by her family as a “perfect dream child” who “moved their world” with her “confidence and empathy”. Bebe’s parents Lauren and Ben King said she was a “sweet, kind and spirited girl” who was “full of joy, light an
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