Southport child killer’s sentence not unduly lenient, Attorney General says

The Southport child killer’s sentence will not be referred to the Court of Appeal, the Attorney General has said.

Axel Rudakubana, 18, was jailed for life with a minimum term of 52 years in January for the murders of three girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in July last year.

But the sentence sparked criticism from a family involved in the attack and MPs, alongside calls for law changes to allow whole term sentences for offenders under 18.

Rudakubana was 17 when he slaughtered Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and attempted to murder eight other children, class instructor Leanne Lucas and businessman John Hayes.

His minimum term is one of the longest on record.

On Friday Attorney General Lord Hermer KC said he would not be referring the sentence to the Court of Appeal under the unduly lenient sentence scheme.

In a statement, Lord Hermer said: ‘The senseless and barbaric murder of three young girls in Southport last summer shocked our nation.

‘No words come anywhere close to expressing the brutality and horror in this case.

‘It was understandable that we received multiple requests to review the sentence under the unduly lenient sentence scheme, which is designed to identify and remedy gross errors made by judges.

‘After careful consideration of independent legal advice and consultation with leading criminal barristers and the Crown Prosecution Service, I have concluded that this case cannot properly be referred to the Court of Appeal.

‘No-one would want the families to be put through an unnecessary further court process where there is no realistic legal basis for an increased sentence.

‘The 52-year sentence imposed by the judge was the second longest sentence imposed by the courts in English history.

‘Rudakubana will likely never be released and will spend the rest of his life in jail.

‘The Government have set out the next steps that must now take place to ensure that these awful murders will be a line in the sand.

‘My thoughts today are with the friends and families of Bebe, Elsie and Alice, as well as the other victims – your memories will not be forgotten.’

Southport’s MP, Patrick Hurley, previously asked the Attorney General to review the killer’s sentence as ‘unduly lenient’, saying it is ‘not severe enough’.

A parent of one of the children who survived the attack, who cannot be named because the victim has been granted anonymity by the court, previously told The Sun that Rudakubana’s crimes were so horrific that he should ‘rot in jail’ and the ‘law needs changing’.

After the sentencing, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, backed by shadow home secretary Chris Philp, said there was a ‘strong case’ for amending the law to allow for whole-life orders to be imposed on people aged under 18 in some cases, which the Tories ‘will start to explore’.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said at the time that the ‘vile offender will likely never be released’.

Rudakubana’s punishment is thought to be the longest imposed on a killer of his age.

He cannot legally receive a whole-life order, a punishment reserved for offenders aged 21 and over or, in rare cases, those aged 18 to 20, because of his age at the time of the attack.

The families of the children Rudakubana murdered are understood to have been informed of the decision.

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