‘Sadistic’ killer of young girls sentenced to at least 52 years in prison in UK

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“He will serve almost the whole of his life in custody. I consider it likely he will never be released and he will be in custody for all of his life.”

Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, Bebe King, six, and Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, died while eight other children and two adults – dance class leader Leanne Lucas and businessman Jonathan Hayes – were seriously wounded.

A fight breaks out protesters and counterprotesters in Blackpool, following the stabbing attacks in Southport, which were wrongly attributed to a migrant. Credit: AP

There were reportedly gasps from the public gallery in court as extremely distressing footage of his “sadistic” and “meticulously planned” attack was played on the courtroom TV monitors.

Since Rudakubana pleaded guilty, a portrait of a deeply troubled young man obsessed with violence has emerged, as has the fact that he was on the radar of the local authorities for years before the attack.

At age 13 and 14, he was referred three times to Prevent, a British counterterrorism program. The first time was for researching school shootings during class, in 2019.

Then in 2021, he was referred for uploading images of Muammar Qaddafi, the Libyan dictator, to his Instagram account, and for researching the London Bridge terrorist attack. But those referrals were ultimately dropped because it was determined each time that he did not meet the threshold for intervention.

One of the victims, Bebe King.

One of the victims, Bebe King.Credit: AP

But prosecutors said there was no evidence that he ascribed to any particular political or religious ideology. Content found on his computer and tablets showed a longstanding fascination with violence, killing and genocide.

The court heard that he had gloated about the killings at a police station after his arrest, saying: “It’s a good thing those children are dead . . . so glad . . . so happy.”

Prime Minster Keir Starmer said following the verdict that the thoughts of the entire nation were with the families and everyone affected by the “unimaginable horrors”.

“No words will ever be able to capture the depth of their pain,” Starmer said.

“After one of the most harrowing moments in our country’s history we owe it to these innocent young girls and all those affected to deliver the change that they deserve.”

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