London — A British teenager pleaded guilty on Monday to the murder of three girls and the attempted murder of 10 other people in what the prosecutor said was “carefully planned”. stabbing rampage at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in England last summer. Axel Rudakubana18, made the surprise plea as jury selection was expected to begin at the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court.
The stabbings on July 29 sent shockwaves across the UK and led to a week of widespread unrest across parts of England and Northern Ireland after the suspect was falsely identified as an asylum seeker who had recently arrived in Britain by boat. He was actually born in Wales.
The rampage happened on the first day of summer vacation when the girls at Hart Space, a facility hidden behind a row of houses, were in class to learn yoga and dance to Taylor Swift songs. What should have been a day of joy turned into horror and heartbreak when Rudakubana, armed with a knife, barged in and began stabbing the girls and their teacher in the seaside town of Southport in northwest England.
Chris Furlong/Getty
“This was an unspeakable attack — one that has left a lasting mark on our community and nation for its savagery and senselessness,” said Deputy Attorney General Ursula Doyle. “A day that should have been a day of carefree innocence; children enjoying a dance workshop and making friendship bracelets became the scene of the darkest horror as Axel Rudakubana carried out his carefully planned rampage.”
Prosecutors have not said what they believe led Rudakuban – who was days shy of his 18th birthday – to commit the crimes, but Doyle said it was clear he had a “sickening and abiding interest in death and violence”.
Rudakubana has consistently refused to speak in court, and did so once more when asked to identify himself at the start of the proceedings. But he broke his silence when the 16-count indictment was read to him and he was asked to plead guilty, answering “guilty” to each count.
He pleaded guilty to three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and additional charges related to possession of the poison ricin and possession of Al-Qaeda manuals.
Julia Quenzler/Handout/REUTERS
Rudakubana faces up to life in prison when he is sentenced on Thursday, Judge Julian Goose said.
Defense attorney Stanley Reiz said he would present the judge with information about Rudakubana’s mental health that could be relevant to his sentence.
Surviving victims and family members of those killed were not in court because they expected to appear on Tuesday for opening statements.
Goose asked the prosecutor to apologize on his behalf for not being present to hear Rudakuban’s plea.
He pleaded guilty to the murders of Alice Dasilva Aguiar (9), Elsie Dot Stancombe (7) and Bebe King (6).
Eight other girls, aged 7 to 13, were injured, along with instructor Leanne Lucas and Jonathan Hayes, who worked at a neighboring business and intervened. Fifteen other girls, as young as 5, were at the class, but unharmed. According to a court order, none of the surviving girls can be named.
King Charles III and Taylor Swift separately met with some families of the victims after the attack.
Police said the stabbings were not classified as an act of terrorism because the motive was unknown.
Several months after his arrest at the scene of the crime, Rudakubana was charged with additional counts of manufacturing a biological poison, ricin, and possessing information that could be useful to a person committing or preparing to commit an act of terrorism for having the manual in a document on his computer.
Police said they found the evidence during a search of his family’s home in a neighboring village.
A day after the murders – and shortly after a peaceful vigil for the victims – a violent group attacked a mosque near the crime scene and pelted police with bricks and bottles and set fire to police vehicles.
The unrest then spread to dozens of other cities over the next week when groups of mostly men mobilized by far-right activists on social media clashed with police during violent protests and attacked hotels housing migrants.
More than 1,200 people were arrested for the riots, and hundreds were sentenced to up to nine years in prison.
