In 12 years as a journalist, I’ve never sat through such a harrowing court hearing.
It was impossible not to be moved to tears hearing the horrific injuries suffered by children as young as six years old, who seconds earlier had been happily making Taylor Swift bracelets and dancing to their favourite songs.
PAAxel Rudakubana was a coward to the end in court[/caption]
PAChilling footage shows Axel Rudakubana arriving at the dance class to begin his rampage[/caption]
Darren FletcherSarah Ridley, who described the case as harrowing, has been a journalist for 12 years[/caption]
Their short lives were cut short by the senseless killing carried out for no other reason than to fulfil a sick obsession with violence.
The families of Axel Rudakubana’s victims – whose own lives have been torn apart – sat with quiet dignity as he was caged for life.
Liverpool Crown Court heard details of the children’s injuries that were so horrific, their parents asked the media not to repeat them.
As sobbing filled the courtroom, CCTV captured members of the public running over to help – displaying actions that can only be described as heroic.
A coward to the end, Rudakubana robbed the families of the chance to look him in the eye as he refused to enter the dock as his sentence was handed down.
I felt a burning anger at his failure to show one shred of remorse or respect for the families as he repeatedly disrupted proceedings – forcing the judge to remove him from the courtroom twice.
There were no cheers in court as Rudakubana’s sentence was handed down.
Following five hours of heartbreaking witness statements and harrowing details describing the injuries inflicted on their tiny bodies, it felt far from a cause for celebration.
It can only be hoped that the families can find a degree of comfort knowing the killer is likely to die in jail and will never again be free to inflict such horror.
PABebe King, 6, was among the youngsters stabbed to death[/caption]
PAAlice Dasilva Aguiar was also left dead in the rampage[/caption]
PAElsie Dot was killed by the monster at the dance class[/caption]
A timeline of events
Why didn’t judge give Southport killer a whole life tariff?
AXEL Rudakubana carried out his twisted rampage when he was 17 years old but despite the horrific nature of his crimes, he was not be given a whole life tariff.
The rare sentencing order can only be handed down to anyone aged 21 or over.
Due to Rudakubana’s age, this means he will not spend the rest of his life in prison.
Whole-life orders can sometimes be considered for those aged 18 to 20 in exceptional circumstances.
Although Rudakubana is now 18, he does not fall into this category due to the fact he was 17 when he committed his offences.
The killer was instead be given a life sentence but with a minimum tariff. This means he must spend that amount of time behind bars before he is considered for release.
The judge imposed a minimum term of 52 years, which is one of the highest on record and is thought to be the longest punishment handed to a killer of his age.
Taking into account the 175 days he has already served on remand, he will be required to serve 51 years and 190 days before he can be considered for release by the Parole Board.
Despite the length of the minimum term, it has already been referred to the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme.
Manchester Arena bomber Hashem Abedi, 23, was handed a record-breaking 55-year minimum term in 2020 for 22 murders and attempted killings. The terrorist orchestrated the 2017 atrocity when he was 20.
Prior to that, the longest minimum term imposed on a terrorist in Britain is believed to have been 50 years in the case of David Copeland.
The 22-year-old was given six life sentences for targeting Brick Lane, Soho and Brixton in 1999 in a 13-day nail bombing campaign that left three people dead and 139 injured.
A horrifying machete and sheaf was found during a search of the killer’s home
PARudakubana has been detained for life with a minimum term of 52 years, pictured on day of attack[/caption]
The monster covered his face with a mask as he arrived in a taxi before the murders
Timeline of events related to the Southport stabbings
AXEL Rudakubana has pleaded guilty to the murders of Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, and 10 counts of attempted murder.
Here is a timeline of events relating to the case:
2002: Rudakubana’s father Alphonse moves to the UK from Rwanda, according to an interview he gave to his local newspaper in Southport in 2015.
August 7, 2006: Rudakubana is born in Cardiff, Wales.
2013: The family – including Rudakubana’s father, mother and older brother – move from Wales to Banks in Lancashire, a few miles from Southport.
July 29, 2024: Shortly before midday, a knifeman enters a dance class at The Hart Space in Hart Street in Southport.
Bebe, Elsie and Alice are fatally wounded. Eight other children are injured, as are instructor Leanne Lucas and businessman John Hayes.
Police say they have detained a male and seized a knife.
Within hours, claims spread online that the suspect is an asylum seeker who arrived in the UK by boat in 2023.
Some claims include an alleged identity.
July 30, 2024: In the evening, a peaceful vigil is held outside Southport’s Atkinson arts venue, where flowers are laid in memory of those who died.
Shortly after the vigil, a separate protest begins outside the town’s mosque in St Luke’s Road.
People throw items towards the mosque, property is damaged and police vehicles are set on fire.
July 31, 2024: Demonstrators gather in Whitehall, London, for an “Enough Is Enough” protest.
Flares and cans are thrown at police and more than 100 people are arrested.
Disorder also breaks out in Hartlepool, County Durham, and Aldershot, Hampshire.
August 1, 2024: Police announce that Rudakubana has been charged with the murders of Bebe, Elsie Dot and Alice, 10 counts of attempted murder and possession of a bladed article.
He is not named by police because of his age.
He appears in court in Liverpool and Honorary Recorder of Liverpool Andrew Menary KC rules he can be named, as he is due to turn 18 in a week.
He initially smiled on entering the courtroom – then kept his face covered by his sweatshirt for the remainder of the proceedings before the case was adjourned.
Later that evening, demonstrators gather outside a hotel in Newton Heath, Manchester.
August 2, 2024: Three police officers are taken to hospital after disorder in Sunderland.
August 3, 2024: There are scenes of violence during planned protests across the UK, including in Liverpool, Hull, Nottingham and Belfast.
August 4, 2024: Disorder continues, including outside a Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, where masked demonstrators launch lengths of wood and sprayed fire extinguishers at police officers.
August 5, 2024: The Government holds an emergency Cobra meeting in the wake of the disorder and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer vows to “ramp up criminal justice”.
That evening, a peaceful vigil is held in Southport, a week on from the killings. Police deal with disorder in Plymouth, Devon and Darlington, County Durham.
August 7, 2024: Prison sentences for those involved in the unrest begin to be handed out. Derek Drummond, 58, is the first person to be jailed for violent disorder at Liverpool Crown Court, where he is sentenced to three years.
More than 100 protests are planned for across the country, with counter-demonstrations taking place, but the majority of police forces report very little trouble.
October 29, 2024: Merseyside Police announces Rudakubana will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court via videolink the next day charged with production of a biological toxin, Ricin, and possession of information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing to commit an act of terrorism.
October 30, 2024: Rudakubana appears at Westminster Magistrates’ Court via videolink from HMP Belmarsh to face the two new charges.
He holds his sweater over the bottom half of his face and does not respond when asked to confirm his name.
November 13, 2024: Rudakubana appears at Liverpool Crown Court via videolink. He covers his face with his grey sweatshirt and does not speak throughout the hearing.
About 20 family members of victims sit in the public gallery. The case is adjourned until December 12, when a preparatory hearing will take place.
January 20, 2025: Rudakubana appears at Liverpool Crown Court for the first day of his trial where he pleads guilty to all 16 charges, including the murders of Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven.
Rudakubana, pictured starring in a BBC advert for Children in Need, attacked children at random Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
