Murdered girls' families 'aghast' at 'copycat' case

The families of the three girls murdered in the Southport attack have said they are "aghast" that a teenager who planned a "copycat" crime was not detained when he was sentenced last week.

The boy, now 17, became obsessed with Axel Rudakubana, who killed Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and Bebe King, six, in July 2024.

On 6 August 2025 the boy, from Kirkby in Merseyside, called police to confess he was planning an attack and asked to be arrested.

The girls' families said they were "extremely alarmed" at the "parallels" between the two cases. The Courts and Tribunals Judiciary said it did not comment on individual cases.

The families added they would be writing to Sir Adrian Fulford, chair of the public inquiry into Rudakubana's crimes.

A Home Office spokesperson said: "Our thoughts remain with the families of Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice Da Silva Aguiar. We also thank the police for stepping in and preventing another tragedy on this occasion.

"Phase one of the Southport Inquiry is due to report next month, so it would be inappropriate for us to comment further."

The details of the "copycat" case emerged as the boy was sentenced to a three-year youth rehabilitation order on Thursday after admitting four counts of possessing information likely to be useful to a person planning or committing an act of terrorism.

Those charges related to him downloading bomb making manuals, terrorist training guides and instructions on how to make ricin.

A charge of making threats to kill was ordered to lie on file.

The families of the Southport attack victims said their children had each been failed by the "very agencies that were supposed to protect them".

"Had they acted decisively, our children would still be alive," the statement said.

"Yet we now face the reality that a 17‑year‑old boy has admitted these offences, expressed ideologies aligned with AR [Axel Rudakubana] – and still walks free.

"This is about repeated failures by agencies and professionals who knew better, and still did nothing."

The boy, who cannot be named due to his age, had discussed attacking a primary school to kill "little girls" and also mentioned LGBT events, the court heard last week.

Judge Neil Flewitt KC, who sentenced the boy, said it had been a "difficult decision" but he believed the public would be better protected if the boy was subjected to intensive rehabilitation work than a short custodial sentence.

The families of Alice, Elsie and Bebe also said they were concerned about the "parallels" between the two cases before the boy called the police.

Like Rudakubana, the boy appeared to be obsessed with violence and death. He had told police he "lacked empathy and morality" and wanted to get help.

Searches of his electronic devices revealed the teenager idolised killers immersed in "incel" culture - a reference to mostly men who consider themselves involuntarily celibate due to perceived social or physical handicaps.

The sub-culture has been defined by a hatred of women - who are often blamed for denying incel men sexual and romantic affection - as well as society in general.

The teenager was particularly in awe of Rudakubana, calling himself an "Axelcel" and saying he was "inspired" by the Southport attack.

He even bought a green hoodie similar to the one worn by Rudakubana during the murders on 29 July 2024.

Both Rudakubana and the boy had been referred to the counter-extremism service Prevent by teachers due to concerning comments about violence and terrorism, including the Manchester Arena bombing.

While a second referral was being assessed when the boy was arrested last year, the first case, in 2021, had been closed.

A panel had concluded his behaviour was driven by autism rather than ideological extremism and said it had "no ongoing counter-terrorism concerns".

Similar conclusions were reached when Rudakubana was referred to Prevent three times before he launched his deadly attack.

His case was rejected because he showed no clear signs of a coherent ideological, political or religious motivation.

Solicitor Chris Walker, from Bond Turner Law, which is representing the families, said his clients were in "profound shock" at the most recent case.

He said they were keenly aware the boy was only stopped after calling the police himself, and not because of any intervention by official agencies.

"The Southport Inquiry has already revealed multiple agencies in disarray, including Prevent, policing, safeguarding, psychiatric risk assessments, multi-agency communication, and escalation," he said.

"With such widespread systemic failures, we ask: how can the public be expected to have any confidence in the system?"

The Southport Public Inquiry concluded its Phase One oral hearings in November and examined the contact between Axel Rudakubana and various state systems prior to the attack – and whether there were opportunities to manage the risk he posed.

It heard multiple public agencies - including schools, police, youth justice, and mental health teams - had interacted with him over several years due to his behaviour.

A report into the findings is due to be published on 13 April and and will inform the focus of Phase Two.

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