Southport attack: In 12 minutes, Axel Rudakubana killed 3 kids for 'sadistic pleasure'; now jailed for 52 yrs

The 18-year-old Axel Rudakubana, who was found guilty of going on a stabbing spree and killing three girls in Southport was sentenced to 52 years in prison. As per the ruling, the man was found guilty of the “ferocious” and “sadistic” knife rampage at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class.

While Rudakubana refused to appear in the dock for sentencing, a judge ruled that he would probably “never be released and he will be in custody for all his life” for the “savage” murder of three young girls and attempted murder of eight others, along with two others who tried to save them," The Guardian reported. During the trial of the case, it was revealed that two years before the attack, Rudakubana’s parents had called the police four times in six months asking for help.

On one such occasion, he was caught carrying a blade on a bus, but officers did not detain him at that time. They instead took him home and asked his mother to keep knives out of his reach. The judge at the Liverpool Crown Court heard the case as the prosecutors laid out what happened during the 12-minute attack.

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Court describes Rudakubana as ‘savage and sadistic’

The prosecutors told the court that some of Rudakubana’s victims suffered from dozens of stabbings. Many even broke bones because of the force. The court was told that he chased young girls out of which three of them Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine – suffered unsurvivable injuries.

While narrating the whole ordeal, prosecutor Deanna Heer KC said that the attack on two of them could only be described as “sadistic”. It is pertinent to note that Sentencing Rudakubana to life with a minimum term of 52 years in prison – the longest jail term ever given to someone his age.

Justice Julian Goose, who was overseeing the case, said that the triple killed would only be released if a Parole Board believed he was no longer a threat to the public. “It is likely he will never be released and he will be in custody for all of his life," the judge remarked. He could not be given a life sentence since he was 17 at the time of the attack.

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Hence if Rudakubana completes his prison term, he will be almost 70 when he is freed. During the sentencing, the defendant pleaded for medical assistance. “My chest is hurting … I need to speak to a paramedic,” he shouted, before interrupting the judge as he tried to proceed: “Don’t continue! Don’t continue! Don’t continue!” he remarked, The Guardian reported.

The man boasted about his wrongdoings

At the hearing, Heer said Rudakubana had boasted of his attack shortly after being arrested, saying: “I’m so glad those kids are dead … it makes me happy.” The prosecutors argued that this was one of the “unsolicited comments” recorded on CCTV footage or noted down at the time.

The convict was also heard saying" “So happy, six years old. It’s a good thing they are dead, yeah” and “I don’t care, I’m feeling neutral.” Police argued that the teen may have copied the stabbing method from an al-Qaida training manual he admitted possessing. He is also believed to have used it to attempt to make ricin, which was found in his bedroom. However, the authorities found no evidence that it was ever used.

Following the sentencing, a public inquiry will examine the missed opportunities to stop Rudakubana, who had been referred three times to Prevent, the government’s anti-extremism programme. However, the body said that they did not believe that he posed a threat.

With inputs from agencies.