The crime horrified the nation and was followed by days of anti-migrant rioting across the country in August.
A British teenager pleaded guilty to the murder of three young girls in knife attack in the north of the United Kingdom in July, a crime that horrified the nation and was followed by days of rioting across the country.
Axel Rudakubana, 18, changed his plea from not guilty to guilty on what was due to be the first day of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court on Monday.
He pleaded guilty to murdering Bebe King, 6; Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7; and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9, at a Taylor Swift-themed dance event in Southport on July 29, 2024.
Ten others were wounded, including eight children, in one of the country’s worst mass stabbings in years.
Rudakubana also pleaded guilty to 10 charges for attempted murder in connection with the attack, as well as manufacturing the deadly poison ricin and possessing al-Qaeda training manuals.
Judge Julian Goose said he would sentence Rudakubana on Thursday and that a life sentence was imminent.
Dressed in a gray tracksuit and surgical mask, the teenager refused to stand in court and did not speak except for the word “guilty”.
In December of guilty plea stepped in on Rudakuban’s behalf when he refused to speak in court, and the case was scheduled for a four-week trial.
Rudakubana was born in Wales to parents of Rwandan descent. He lived in Banks, a village north-east of Southport.
Following the murders, riots broke out in Southport after false information was spread on social media that the suspected killer was a Muslim migrant.
Those riots spread across the United Kingdom with attacks on mosques and hotels housing asylum seekers, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer blaming far-right violence for the riots. More than 1,500 people were arrested.
UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said on Monday that the coming days “will be a deeply traumatic and distressing time for the girls’ families”. But she said it was important for the legal process to continue so that “justice can be served.”
