In a shocking turn of events, a British teenager confessed to the brutal murder of three young girls and the wounding of ten others during a Taylor Swift-themed dance class last summer. The teenager, Axel Rudakubana, also admitted to possessing an al-Qaida training manual.
Rudakubana, who turned 18 shortly after the incident, pleaded guilty to the murders of Bebe King, 6, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9. He also confessed to ten counts of attempted murder, having stabbed eight other children and two adults who tried to intervene during the horrific event.
In addition to the murder charges, Rudakubana admitted to possessing the al-Qaida manual, “Military Studies in the Jihad Against the Tyrants,” and the deadly poison ricin at his residence near Southport, the site of the gruesome attack.
The court informed Rudakubana that he could face a life sentence when he appears for sentencing later this week. The Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor, Ursula Doyle, described the act as “unspeakable,” highlighting Rudakubana’s “sickening and sustained interest in death and violence.”
The attack, which took place in July during a class for young children to learn yoga and dance to Taylor Swift’s songs, sparked a week of riots following false rumors that the attacker was a recent asylum-seeker. In reality, Rudakubana was born in the UK. The riots resulted in 1,200 arrests, with many facing up to nine years in prison for their involvement.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer referred to the incident as a “moment of trauma” for the nation and raised questions about the state’s failure to protect the young victims. Rudakubana, who had previously refused to speak in court, broke his silence to plead guilty to each of the 16 charges.
In addition to the three girls who lost their lives, eight other girls aged between 7 and 13 were injured. Two adults, dance teacher Leanne Lucas and worker Jonathan Hayes, were also injured while trying to stop the attack. Fifteen other girls, some as young as 5, witnessed the horrifying event.
Despite the discovery of the al-Qaida manual and ricin at Rudakubana’s home, the police did not classify the incident as terrorism, stating that the teenager’s motive remained unknown.