The Attorney General has announced that the sentence of the Southport child killer will not be referred to the Court of Appeal. Axel Rudakubana, 18, was handed a minimum of 52 years in January for the murder of three girls at a dance class, sparking outrage among a victim’s family and MPs, with calls for legal reforms.
Rudakubana received one of the longest minimum terms on record for the attack during a Taylor Swift-themed class in Merseyside in July last year, when he was just 17. He murdered Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and attempted to murder eight other children, whose identities are protected, dance instructor Leanne Lucas, and businessman John Hayes.
On Friday, Attorney General Lord Hermer KC stated he would not refer the sentence to the Court of Appeal under the unduly lenient sentence scheme. Lord Hermer said in a statement: “The senseless and barbaric murder of three young girls in Southport last summer shocked our nation.
“No words come anywhere close to expressing the brutality and horror in this case.
“It was understandable that we received multiple requests to review the sentence under the unduly lenient sentence scheme, which is designed to identify and remedy gross errors made by judges.
Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice da Silva Aguiar were horrifically killed (Image: PA Media)
“After careful consideration of independent legal advice and consultation with leading criminal barristers and the Crown Prosecution Service, I have concluded that this case cannot properly be referred to the Court of Appeal.
“No-one would want the families to be put through an unnecessary further court process where there is no realistic legal basis for an increased sentence.
“The 52-year sentence imposed by the judge was the second longest sentence imposed by the courts in English history.
“Rudakubana will likely never be released and will spend the rest of his life in jail.
“The Government have set out the next steps that must now take place to ensure that these awful murders will be a l ine in the sand.
“My thoughts today are with the friends and families of Bebe, Elsie and Alice, as well as the other victims – your memories will not be forgotten.”
Southport’s MP, Patrick Hurley, previously asked the Attorney General to review the killer’s sentence as “unduly lenient”, saying it is “not severe enough”.
A parent of one of the children who survived the attack, who cannot be named because the victim has been granted anonymity by the court, previously told The Sun that Rudakubana’s crimes were so horrific that he should “rot in jail” and the “law needs changing”.
Following the sentencing, Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, with the support of shadow home secretary Chris Philp, declared there’s a “strong case” for revising the law to permit whole-life sentences for criminals under 18 in some circumstances, an alteration that the Conservatives plan to examine. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer remarked at the time that the “vile offender will likely never be released”.
The sentence given to Rudakubana is believed to be the most severe ever for someone his age. Under current laws, he cannot be handed a whole-life order due to being below the age threshold of 21, although exceptions exist for those between 18 to 20 in extraordinary instances.
It is understood from PA news agency sources that the families of the children whom Rudakubana killed have been briefed about the decision by the Attorney General. Detailed descriptions of the horrors endured by the girls during their ordeal at The Hart Space were disclosed throughout the Liverpool Crown Court hearing, with Bebe enduring a harrowing 122 sharp force injuries and Elsie suffering 85.
Cardiff-born Rudakubana confessed to knife possession, producing the deadly poison ricin, and having material that could aid someone planning or committing terrorism. Prior to his spree, three referrals about Rudakubana’s concerning behaviour were made to the anti-terror Prevent programme, alongside six separate calls to the police.
Last month, the Government declared a public inquiry into the stabbings, with Chancellor Rachel Reeves stating that the investigation would need to determine Prevent’s approach to identifying ideology and what it considers as terror. Following the attack, chaos broke out across the nation, with mosques and hotels housing asylum seekers among the sites targeted, after false information circulated online alleging that the suspect was an asylum seeker who had entered the UK on a small boat.
Since then, over 1,000 arrests related to nationwide disorder have been made, and hundreds of individuals have been charged and imprisoned.
