LONDON — An 18-year-old male has been charged with the murders of three girls and the injuries of ten others stemming from a stabbing incident during a dance class centered around Taylor Swift in England this past summer. The young man, Axel Rudakubana, is set to stand trial starting January 20 at Liverpool Crown Court, facing three counts of murder along with ten counts of attempted murder. Additionally, he faces charges related to possessing the lethal poison ricin and for having an al-Qaida manual.
During the court hearing, family members and friends of the victims, along with one of the instructors who suffered serious injuries, were present to witness Rudakubana appear via video link from Belmarsh prison located in south London. Notably, Rudakubana has yet to enter a plea and consistently remains silent during court appearances, earlier pulling his sweatshirt over his face to avoid identification or interaction with the judge. Justice Julian Goose remarked on the lack of response, saying, “I know you can hear me because the officer behind you said I can be heard.”
The anticipated length of the trial is between four and six weeks, and the next hearing is slated for December 12. The charges against Rudakubana were formally brought forth in August after he allegedly killed Alice Dasilva Aguiar, age 9, Elsie Dot Stancombe, age 7, and Bebe King, age 6, along with wounding ten other individuals during the incident on July 29 in Southport, a seaside town in northern England.
In addition to the charges related to the stabbings, he was indicted last month for the production of the biological toxin ricin and for having a document on his computer deemed potentially useful for individuals looking to commit acts of terrorism.
Authorities have clarified that the stabbings are not officially labeled as terrorism-related, as the motive behind the attack remains unclear. However, the incident has fueled unrest among far-right groups, who have incited anger towards immigrants and Muslims, wrongly portraying Rudakubana as an asylum seeker who arrived in the UK by boat. In truth, he was born in Wales to Rwandan parents.
The situation led to widespread riots across England and Northern Ireland, escalating over a week with over 1,200 arrests and hundreds facing imprisonment due to the disturbances.