The British teenager who killed three girls during a dance lesson dedicated to singer Taylor Swift in Southport, northern England in July last year, has been sentenced to a minimum of 52 years in prison, the BBC reported, quoted by bTV.
Axel Rudakubana, 17, stabbed several people, including 11 children and two adults, in the coastal English town. Three of them died - girls aged six, seven and nine.
„Another eight children were stabbed during the attack, and five of them are in a critical condition. Two adults are also in critical condition after being injured in the incident, police said at the time.
According to police, the attacker entered the premises armed with a knife and began attacking the children. He was arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder and attempted murder.
Judge Julian Goose said that 18-year-old Axel Rudakubana "wanted to attempt to commit a mass murder of innocent, happy little girls".
Goose explained that a life sentence without parole could not be imposed because Rudakubana was a minor at the time of the attack.
However, the judge added that the teenager would have to serve more than 51 years in prison before parole could be considered, and predicted that he "will probably never be released".
On the first day of the trial, Axel Rudakubana pleaded guilty to the murder of three girls and the attempted murder of several others during a dance lesson in Southport last summer.
The youth also admitted to producing the biological toxin ricin on or before July 29, the date of the attack.
The terrorist offense is related to a PDF file titled “Military Studies in Jihad Against Tyrants“, an al-Qaeda training manual that Axel is alleged to have possessed between August 29, 2021, and July 30, 2024.
Ricin is a highly toxic poison that is naturally produced from the castor oil plant. The substance and the document were found during a search of his home in Banks, Lancashire, which he shares with his parents, who are originally from Rwanda.