Southport Child Killer Charged with Terror Offense: Al-Qaeda Manual Found

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A teenager accused of murdering three children in a mass stabbing at a Taylor Swift-themed holiday club in Southport, which sparked far-right riots across the United Kingdom, has been charged with terror offense, murder, and making a biological weapon.

18-year-old Axel Rudakubana was charged with three counts of murder as well as ten counts of attempted murder and possession of a bladed weapon over the Southport attacks last July, which sparked riots in the entire country. 

Six-year-old Bebe King and seven-year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe were killed in the attack, while nine-year-old Alice da Silva Aguiar died from her injuries in the hospital afterward. Rudakubana was also charged with attempting to murder eight other children, dance instructor Leanne Lucas, and businessman John Hayes.

British authorities announced on October 29th that further charges would be filed against Rudakubana following searches of his home address in Banks, Lancashire.

Officers discovered a substance that was determined to be ricin, a poison naturally found in castor beans. They also discovered a PDF file named “Military studies in the jihad against the tyrants: the Al Qaeda training manual” – a document likely to be valuable for someone planning to commit a terrorist attack.

Aside from murder charges, Rudakubana is also charged with producing a biological toxin, contrary to Section One of the Biological Weapons Act of 1974, as well as possessing the manual under Section 58 of the Terrorism Act.

However, the attack in the town’s Hart Space has not been categorized as a terrorist incident because no terrorist motive has been established, according to police. No traces of ricin were found at the scene of the stabbings.

Rudakubana’s arrest also did not put to rest further allegations regarding the killer’s identity, with Robert Jenrick, a British MP running for the leadership of the Conservative Party, claiming that the Government was “lying” to the public about what was known about the alleged attacker. 

These allegations led Jonathan Hall KC, the independent reviewer of the UK’s terrorism laws, to urge the British government to be more open about criminal investigations to avoid the information gap being filled by social media.

“The Government has to be aware, and will be aware, that if there is an information gap, particularly in the mainstream media, then there are other voices, particularly in social media, who will try and fill it,” Hall told the BBC Radio 4 program.

The day after the attack, thousands of people turned out for a peaceful vigil in Southport to mourn the victims, but later, a violent protest erupted outside a mosque in the town. Protests took place in dozens of towns and cities across the United Kingdom and descended into violence, with asylum center hotels particularly targeted. 

Far-right riots erupted across the United Kingdom in the wake of the incident after misinformation about the killer’s identity. More than 1,00 arrests have since been made, and hundreds of people have been charged and jailed.

Rudakubana was born to Rwandan parents in Cardiff, Wales, before he and his family moved to Banks, Lancashire. He was 17 at the time of the murders. A provisional trial date for Rudakubana was set for January next year.

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