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| fatalities = 3 | fatalities = 3
| injuries = 10 | injuries = 10
| accused = | accused = Axel Rudakubana
| charges = Murder (3 counts)<br />Attempted murder (10 counts)<br>Possession of a bladed article (1 count) | charges = Murder (3 counts)<br />Attempted murder (10 counts)<br>Possession of a bladed article (1 count)
| weapons = | weapons =

Revision as of 12:30, 4 August 2024

Stabbing attack in the United Kingdom

2024 Southport stabbing
About OpenStreetMapsMaps: terms of use 1km
0.6miles Attack site   
LocationHart Street, Southport, Merseyside,
United Kingdom
Coordinates53°38′32.5″N 2°59′7.3″W / 53.642361°N 2.985361°W / 53.642361; -2.985361
Date29 July 2024; 4 months ago (2024-07-29)
c. 11:47 (BST (UTC+1))
TargetChildren at a dance workshop
Attack typeStabbing
Deaths3
Injured10
AccusedAxel Rudakubana
ChargesMurder (3 counts)
Attempted murder (10 counts)
Possession of a bladed article (1 count)

On 29 July 2024, a mass stabbing occurred at a dance studio in Southport, Merseyside, United Kingdom. Three children were killed, and ten other people – eight of whom were children – were injured. Axel Rudakubana, a 17-year-old male, was arrested at the scene, and has been charged with three counts of murder, ten counts of attempted murder and possession of a bladed article.

The attack took place at a Taylor Swift-themed yoga and dance workshop which was being held at the Hart Space, a community studio in the Meols Cop area of Southport. Twenty-five children were in attendance. The attacker stabbed a total of eleven children – three fatally – and two adults. All three fatalities were girls, two of whom died at the scene, while the third died in hospital the following day. Five of the eight injured children and both injured adults were in critical condition following the stabbing.

A motive for the attack has not been identified, although police stated they were not treating it as terror-related. On 30 July, police stated that the suspect was born in Cardiff to Rwandan parents and raised in a Christian household. Dissemination of online misinformation over his identity sparked racially fuelled riots in Southport, London, Hartlepool, Sunderland and Hull involving protesters and police forces.

Background

The Hart Space, where the attack took place, is a studio venue located on Hart Street in Meols Cop, Southport, about a mile east of the town centre. It hosts various yoga, dance, pregnancy, and baby and toddler classes. It is on the first floor of a building which it shares with an office on the ground floor.

The workshop was organised by a local yoga teacher, Leanne Lucas. It was advertised as a "yoga, dance and bracelet making workshop" themed around the music of Taylor Swift. The workshop was aimed at children in Year 2 to Year 6 (ages 6–11), and was being held in the first full week of the summer holidays, scheduled for 29 July 2024 between 10:00 and 12:00 BST. The event was fully booked, with 25 children attending.

Attack

At around 11:45, the attacker arrived at Hart Street by taxi and walked to the Hart Space. He entered the venue via the front door and began stabbing people.

The organisers tried to shield the children from the attacker. One of the organisers, who was critically injured in the attack, ushered some children out of the venue via a fire exit and the other organiser locked others in a toilet. A man from the office in the same building ran into the studio after hearing screams, and was stabbed in the leg when he attempted to disarm the attacker.

At 11:47, Merseyside Police received the first emergency call reporting multiple stabbings at the Hart Space and emergency services began rushing to scene. North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) received their first call about the stabbings a minute later. Two members of the public who were on Hart Street at the time of the attack came across an injured woman who alerted them to the attack before collapsing. One of the men took her phone to speak to police and ran towards the venue, where in the car park he discovered another woman in a car with four or five injured children in the back. He entered the building and encountered the attacker holding a knife on the staircase leading to the studio, who fled back into the room when challenged. The man smashed the front door in an attempt to prevent the attacker from leaving before the police arrived. The first police officer on the scene waited for backup before entering the studio as he was armed only with a baton. After a second police officer arrived, the attacker was tasered and arrested. The attacker's knife was seized and he was taken into custody.

Emergency services quickly declared a major incident as armed response vehicles, thirteen ambulances, the fire service, and three air ambulances – one each from North West Air Ambulance, Midlands Air Ambulance, and Great North Air Ambulance – were dispatched to the scene. Specialist hazardous area response team (HART) and Medical Emergency Response Incident Team (MERIT) units also responded. Merseyside Police imposed an Emergency Restriction of Flying to stop aircraft – including helicopters and drones – from flying without permission.

Victims

Two girls – Bebe King, 6 and Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7 – died at the scene. Nine children and two adults were treated for injuries by NWAS. Six of the nine injured children and both adults were in a critical condition following the stabbings. The injured adults were the event organiser, Leanne Lucas and John Hayes who worked in the same building and confronted the attacker.

Casualties were taken to Alder Hey Children's Hospital, which declared a major incident, as well as Aintree University Hospital, Southport and Formby District General Hospital, Ormskirk District General Hospital, and Royal Manchester Children's Hospital. A third girl – Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9 – died in hospital the day after the incident. The three girls who were killed in the attack were named on the afternoon of 30 July.

Accused

Axel Muganwa Rudakubana (born 7 August 2006) was arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder and attempted murder. Rudakubana was born in Cardiff, Wales, although his parents are originally from Rwanda. The family moved to the Southport area in 2013; at the time of the attack, they lived in Banks, a large village on the north-eastern outskirts of Southport. Rudakubana was brought up in a Christian household, and neighbours recalled the family as being heavily involved with the local church. Rudakubana has an older brother, two years his senior. Neighbours have described him as "quiet".

Rudakubana has a background in musical theatre. In 2018, when he was 11, he was featured in a BBC Children in Need promotional video, starring as the Doctor. The BBC removed the advert from all of its websites on 3 August 2024 after it re-emerged following the release of the Rudakubana's identity.

On 1 August 2024, Rudakubana was charged with three counts of murder, ten counts of attempted murder, and one count of possession of a bladed article. As a minor at the time of the attack, he could not initially be named; however reporting restrictions on his identity were lifted later that day by Liverpool Crown Court, citing concerns over the lack of confirmed identity fuelling misinformation, and over a fresh round of unrest when he turns 18 in six days time, meaning his identity would have become publicly available anyway. Rudakubana was remanded in custody until a plea hearing on 25 October, and has a provisional trial date set of 20 January 2025.

Rudakubana has a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, and had reportedly been unwilling to leave the house and communicate with family.

Merseyside Police have not identified a motive, although they said on 29 July that they were not treating the incident as terror-related.

Aftermath

Official responses

Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the incident as horrendous and shocking, and thanked emergency services for their swift response. A similar remark was made by Leader of the Opposition Rishi Sunak. Speaking in the House of Commons, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper stated that she was concerned by the incident and described the emergency services' response as courageous. Patrick Hurley, in whose constituency the incident occurred, stated that he was deeply concerned and hoped for the best possible outcomes to the casualties whilst as well as praising local organisations that "stepped up to the plate" and urging against any online speculation over the event. Cooper additionally visited Southport the following morning to lay flowers and meet officials and community leaders. Starmer also visited the same day and laid flowers at the scene. He was heckled by some members of the public.

Condolences were sent by King Charles III and Queen Camilla, as well as the Prince and Princess of Wales. The President of Portugal Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro, and the Regional Government of Madeira, sent condolences as Aguiar's parents emigrated from Madeira to the UK.

Taylor Swift responded: "The horror of yesterday's attack in Southport is washing over me continuously ... These were just little kids at a dance class. I am at a complete loss for how to ever convey my sympathies to these families." Swifties (fans of Swift) raised over £300,000 within three days for the victims.

Public reaction, misinformation, and unrest

Further information: 2024 United Kingdom riots

A vigil was held outside the Atkinson in Eastbank Square on the evening of 30 July, with thousands of people in attendance. Flowers and handwritten notes were left there and near the scene of the attack.

In the immediate aftermath of the attack, misinformation about the identity of the attacker began to spread widely on social media, including a false name. False claims regarding the suspect's nationality, religion and migration status were shared by some far-right accounts.

The same evening a large group of people gathered near a mosque on St Luke's Road, near Hart Street. They attacked the mosque with bricks, bottles, and rocks, and set a police vehicle on fire. Merseyside Police believed the group to be supporters of the English Defence League, although the EDL has ceased to exist in a formal sense. Merseyside Police reported that 39 officers were injured; 27 were hospitalised and eight sustained serious injuries. Further racially fuelled riots were later seen across UK cities, including Manchester, London, Sunderland, Hartlepool and Aldershot.

Ology Kids Casting, who had cast Rudakubana in the 2018 Children in Need video, had deleted all posts from their social media platforms about his acting career. A spokesman for BBC Children in Need said that "Our deepest sympathies go out to everyone impacted by this shocking case, and we have removed the video from all of our platforms out of respect to them."

See also

References

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External links

Mass stabbing incidents in the 2020s
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