WARNING: This story contains details of violence involving young children.
A British judge sentenced a teenager who murdered three young girls to minimum of 52 years in prison on Thursday, after the killer was removed from the dock for interrupting his sentencing.
On Monday, Axel Rudakubana, 18, admitted carrying out the killings of Bebe King, 6, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9, last July in the northern English town of Southport, an atrocity that was followed by days of nationwide rioting.
Two of his victims suffered “horrific injuries which … are difficult to explain as anything other than sadistic in nature,” prosecutor Deanna Heer earlier told Liverpool Crown Court.
“I’m glad those kids are dead, it makes me happy,” Rudakubana told police after the attack, Heer said.
Rudakubana also pleaded guilty to 10 charges of attempted murder, as well as to producing the deadly poison ricin and possessing an al-Qaeda training manual. Eight of the 10 victims who suffered non-fatal injuries were also children.
The prosecutor also said the al-Qaeda training manual contained advice on killing with a knife, but that Rudakubana was not inspired by any political or religious ideology.
The children were attending a Taylor Swift-themed dance party, but there’s never been any indication the attacker knew the specifics of what has taking place at the Hart Space in Southport.
Justice Julian Goose said the fact that Rudakubana was nine days shy of his 18th birthday at the time limited him under British law from imposing a “whole life” sentence, but he expressed confidence it was unlikely he would go free.
The killer’s sentences for the various crimes are concurrent.
Previous disturbing behaviour outlined
Heer said two of the girls suffered at least 85 and 122 sharp force injuries, which Rudakubana inflicted with a 20 centimetre-long knife he had bought online from Amazon under an alias.
She described a scene of horror, with the court shown video footage of screaming young girls fleeing the building. One bloodied girl was seen collapsing outside, provoking gasps and sobs from the public gallery.
Images and documents found on a computer at his home showed “he had a long-standing obsession with violence, killing and genocide,” Heer said.
In 2019, Rudakubana had contacted a helpline for children, the prosecutor said, and asked: “What should I do if I want to kill somebody?”
Soon after, he was expelled from school after admitting taking a knife there 10 times and was later arrested with a knife in his backpack after returning to the school and attacking a pupil with a hockey stick, Heer said.
Shortly after the start of his sentencing hearing, Rudakubana was removed from the dock after repeatedly shouting that he was unwell. Someone shouted “coward” as he left.
The U.K. government wants social media companies to do more to stop the spread of disinformation after it was spread on platforms like X and sparked violent protests.
The killings were followed by riots across the country that led to dozens of arrests. Misinformation spread online incorrectly stated Rudakubana was a refugee and a Muslim.
The teen was born in Cardiff, Wales, to parents originally from Rwanda.