GUILTY UK - 3 dead, 10 injured in Southport dance studio after multiple stabbings, 29 July 2024

[Ruthbullock]

The Southport Inquiry: Phase 1 report

Phase 1 report of the inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the Southport attack of 29 July 2024.

www.gov.uk

Link to the report on gov uk

 

[astheworldfallsdown]

"Lessons will be learnt"??

That is, IMO, what is usually trotted out in these cases, then the same thing happens again. IMO no lessons will be learned and we'll be discussing another terrible case like this in the future. JMO.

 

[Ruthbullock]

That is, IMO, what is usually trotted out in these cases, then the same thing happens again. IMO no lessons will be learned and we'll be discussing another terrible case like this in the future. JMO.

I disagree- the report so far is well written and clear, whilst also empathetic to those involved who were responsible for subsequent actions. There are a lot of calm and attainable recommendations in this report, that may help in future. It’s also worth noting some of the response to this event was based on the inquiry and its response to the Manchester bombing- and that change in response did help in this situation.
My only gripe is that I wish they had done more about the out of school clubs regulations. That room was separately hired and didn’t have a fire escape. I’m glad the hart space has moved to a different location- and I understand the people involved were traumatised and injured and don’t warrant further criticism- but any room that is rented out should have an alternative exit route (and that is a hill I will die on). There is a lot of talk about whether the front door should have been locked and a decision made that it was the right choice to leave it unlocked, but if they had an alternative route out of the room it would have made a difference. If there had been a ground floor fire that came up the staircase, they would not have been able to pass over into another unit to escape either.

 

[Dotta]

https://twitter.com/x/status/2043832560854225088

https://twitter.com/x/status/2043825179545985149

 

[Dotta]

https://twitter.com/x/status/2043815498152865985

 

[ZeroAlpha]

Hopefully they name and shame everyone involved.

Ideally his parents should be jailed too but won't be as they were only morally wrong.

 

[worldwatcher]

Don't know, if it's posted before, but here it goes, about the insight of a disfunctional family, Imo..

"The brother of the Southport attacker said his parents "lost control" of their son and he feared his younger sibling would kill a member of their family, a public inquiry has heard."

" The inquiry was told Dion told his friend over the Discord messaging app: "The fights are scary because of the danger of someone dying".

Dion said his brother reminded him of the sociopathic murderer in the film No Country For Old Men."

" The inquiry heard Dion was diagnosed with a neuromuscular disorder at the age of 12 which led to him using a wheelchair and his parents helping him more. "

SBM from:
Dion Rudakubana feared his brother could 'kill family member'
Posted on
4 November 2025

 

[Yellowbelly]

Hopefully they name and shame everyone involved.

Ideally his parents should be jailed too but won't be as they were only morally wrong.

The parents were clearly in denial about their son, but I don't know what offence they could realistically be charged with.

 

[Skigh]

Parents of 'sadistic' Southport killer need to be jailed, lawyer says

Chris Walker said Axel Rudakubana's mother and father had 'blood on their hands.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Parents of a 'sadistic' teenager who carried out the Southport massacre need to be jailed for failing to stop his killing spree, a lawyer for his victims said today.

Chris Walker, who represents the parents of Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, said he understood current legislation made it ‘difficult’ for Axel Rudakubana’s mother and father to be prosecuted.

But he said they had ‘blood on their hands’ and he believed it was ‘correct’ for them to be incarcerated for failing to stop their son’s murder spree.


The apology we heard (from parents of Rudakubana) was rejected by the families, I call for them personally to be incarcerated for their lack of foresight and for not preventing the attack, I firmly believe that’s correct,’ Mr Walker told Today on BBC Radio 4 .

He added: ‘They should go to prison. They have blood on their hands.’

In his damning report, published yesterday, Sir Adrian Fulford, chairman of the public inquiry, said Alphonse Rudakubana, 50, and Laetitia Muyazire, 54, must take some blame for the atrocity.

The report found that they knew Rudakubana was hoarding weapons, including machetes, for at least a year before the July 2024 attack, and had planned to target his former school the week before.

They saw other weapons and a suspicious substances – later discovered to be ingredients for the deadly poison ricin - in his bedroom, and found packaging for a knife when he left the house on the day of the attack, the retired High Court judge said.

‘They reported none of this,’ Sir Adrian added.

 

[Skigh]

Southport agencies 'to be named unless disciplinary action taken'

Chris Walker says he will name staff from five agencies unless suitable disciplinary action is taken.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Lucy6226]

The issue is even without him buying and hoarding knives, they are readily available. A kitchen knife is all he needed. The parents absolutely should have reported it, but I'm not sure they could have prevented the outcome sadly. The other agencies involved need to be held accountable for their part too. IMO

 

[worldwatcher]

The issue is even without him buying and hoarding knives, they are readily available. A kitchen knife is all he needed. The parents absolutely should have reported it, but I'm not sure they could have prevented the outcome sadly. The other agencies involved need to be held accountable for their part too. IMO

I don't agree with you. As a parent, if your son goes off the rails, "incident after incident", then.. as a parent you remain responsible. Even hiding kitchen knifes, or tell my neighbours. I would be the opperhand in that. And with the dad, being a black belt, how pathetic are you, when you can't even control your son??

They knew about it and let their son continue his murder obsession. Young girls have been slaughtered.

Families who are not allowed to experience birthdays, Christmas, graduations, and so on.

I don't feel any compassion at all for that family.
They were given all, shelter, education, even BBC broadcast and so much more..

Its moo, as a single parent.

 

[Dotta]

I don't agree with you. As a parent, if your son goes off the rails, "incident after incident", then.. as a parent you remain responsible. Even hiding kitchen knifes, or tell my neighbours. I would be the opperhand in that. And with the dad, being a black belt, how pathetic are you, when you can't even control your son??

They knew about it and let their son continue his murder obsession. Young girls have been slaughtered.

Families who are not allowed to experience birthdays, Christmas, graduations, and so on.

I don't feel any compassion at all for that family.
They were given all, shelter, education, even BBC broadcast and so much more..

Its moo, as a single parent.

It seems they were treated with kids gloves as immigrants.
The same happened in Sara Sharif case.
Nobody intervened for fear of being accused of racism.
Even as her cries were heard in the whole neighborhood.



JMO

 

[worldwatcher]

It seems they were treated with kids gloves as immigrants.
The same happened in Sara Sharif case.
Nobody intervened for fear of being accused of racism.
Even as her cries were heard in the whole neighborhood.

Its so sick, Imo.
I hope it has serious consequences, also in politics, authorities and so on.
People have been jailed for online comments, and this family walks free??
That's my opinion.

I stand with the true victims.

 

[Lucy6226]

I don't agree with you. As a parent, if your son goes off the rails, "incident after incident", then.. as a parent you remain responsible. Even hiding kitchen knifes, or tell my neighbours. I would be the opperhand in that. And with the dad, being a black belt, how pathetic are you, when you can't even control your son??

They knew about it and let their son continue his murder obsession. Young girls have been slaughtered.

Families who are not allowed to experience birthdays, Christmas, graduations, and so on.

I don't feel any compassion at all for that family.
They were given all, shelter, education, even BBC broadcast and so much more..

Its moo, as a single parent.

Oh there's no compassion. It was simply an opinion of the availability of knives and anyone can get hold of one very easily. Had the parents reported it, hidden knives...what would have stopped him obtaining a knife elsewhere. Most shops don't even bother with the proof of age requirement. The only option him would have been secure accomodation, which is basically prison. That's where the agencies come in with assessing the risk and making appropriate referrals. Parents can't do that part sadly.

Imo the parents are 'lucky' they weren't killed as part of his plan. Maybe they now wish they were?!

 

[Yellowbelly]

The parents were clearly in denial about their son, but I don't know what offence they could realistically be charged with.

Obviously, whether AR's parents should be locked up and what for is being commented on elsewhere. I've seen it pointed out that recently in Scotland a man was found guilty of culpible homicide (the equivalent of manslaughter in Scots law) in relation to the death of his girlfriend, even though she had committed suicide by jumping off a bridge. His actions we judged to have been responsible for her decision to kill herself.

Man jailed for killing wife who jumped from bridge

Lee Milne was sentenced to eight years for being responsible for his wife Kimberly's death, in the first case of its kind in Scotland.

www.bbc.co.uk

Could a similar argument be made with regard to AR's parents for a charge of manslaughter (perhaps by gross negligence) under English law? Probably not, looking at the CPS guidance for GNM. In order to prove the offence, the prosecution must establish the following elements:

"a) The defendant owed a duty of care to the deceased;

b) By a negligent act or omission the defendant was in breach of the duty which he owed to the deceased;

c) The negligent act or omission was a cause of the death; and

d) The negligence, which was a cause of the death, amounts to gross negligence and is therefore a crime;"

The problem here is a), because the CPS guidance goes on to state under 'Duty of Care' -

"There is no general duty of care owed by one citizen to another and there is a "sharp distinction between acts and omissions" - Lord Mustill in Airedale NHS Trust v Bland [1993] AC 789. Unless there is a pre-existing duty of care, a failure to act, even if it results in death, cannot amount to GNM."

Gross Negligence Manslaughter | The Crown Prosecution Service

www.cps.gov.uk

If AR had killed his brother, then perhaps a case could could be made to prosecute the parents for GNM, but as the victims had no connection to AR's parents, there doesn't seem to be a case for GNM under English law.

The other type of involuntary manslaughter under English law is Unlawful Act Manslaughter. Here there has to be an unlawful intentional act, not merely an omission. What unlawful intentional act have AR's patents supposed to have committed?

Homicide: Murder, manslaughter, infanticide and causing or allowing the death or serious injury of a child or vulnerable adult | The Crown Prosecution Service

www.cps.gov.uk

 

[Ruthbullock]

Obviously, whether AR's parents should be locked up and what for is being commented on elsewhere. I've seen it pointed out that recently in Scotland a man was found guilty of culpible homicide (the equivalent of manslaughter in Scots law) in relation to the death of his girlfriend, even though she had committed suicide by jumping off a bridge. His actions we judged to have been responsible for her decision to kill herself.

Man jailed for killing wife who jumped from bridge

Lee Milne was sentenced to eight years for being responsible for his wife Kimberly's death, in the first case of its kind in Scotland.

www.bbc.co.uk

Could a similar argument be made with regard to AR's parents for a charge of manslaughter (perhaps by gross negligence) under English law? Probably not, looking at the CPS guidance for GNM. In order to prove the offence, the prosecution must establish the following elements:

"a) The defendant owed a duty of care to the deceased;

b) By a negligent act or omission the defendant was in breach of the duty which he owed to the deceased;

c) The negligent act or omission was a cause of the death; and

d) The negligence, which was a cause of the death, amounts to gross negligence and is therefore a crime;"

The problem here is a), because the CPS guidance goes on to state under 'Duty of Care' -

"There is no general duty of care owed by one citizen to another and there is a "sharp distinction between acts and omissions" - Lord Mustill in Airedale NHS Trust v Bland [1993] AC 789. Unless there is a pre-existing duty of care, a failure to act, even if it results in death, cannot amount to GNM."

Gross Negligence Manslaughter | The Crown Prosecution Service

www.cps.gov.uk

If AR had killed his brother, then perhaps a case could could be made to prosecute the parents for GNM, but as the victims had no connection to AR's parents, there doesn't seem to be a case for GNM under English law.

The other type of involuntary manslaughter under English law is Unlawful Act Manslaughter. Here there has to be an unlawful intentional act, not merely an omission. What unlawful intentional act have AR's patents supposed to have committed?

Homicide: Murder, manslaughter, infanticide and causing or allowing the death or serious injury of a child or vulnerable adult | The Crown Prosecution Service

www.cps.gov.uk

I’m not convinced locking them up is going to achieve anything- I am sure they carry the guilt of what their child did. It would be nice for them to become advocates to get things changed to prevent this happening again, but I believe they fear for their own safety- so it is unlikely they would adopt a public advocacy role to prevent knife and weapon sales and promote safer internet use.

If you read the report, whilst they originally were in denial about their child’s behaviour, their inadequate parenting and lack of knowledge of autism combined with this level of defiance- were noted by various services, but no help was really offered (I would even go so far as to say IMO, it should have been enforced and the parental choice removed). It is easy to write the words and the solutions, but we had an autistic teenager (16) stab his mother in the hand locally- he was then removed from the parents and put in a secure youth unit where he remains years later. We also had the case of Katy Rough in York- again a teenager (sibling) of a similar age with autism- who was detained in a secure youth hospital. The issues are complex- parents of children with autism and behavioural issues are often unseen by the very services that should be providing support to both the parents and the children. A large majority of parents with autistic children will be physically attacked at some point- the interventions and support that follow are really important- both parental and with the children. Getting in early and helping those children is so important and it just wasn’t happening in this case. The two cases in York I detailed above were autistic teenagers who stabbed someone, in one case a step sibling fatally- jailing them isn’t the answer. Yes it may make a proportion of people feel that justice has been served, but it’s a plaster that would allow the wound underneath to still fester and be infected.

ARs parents couldn’t cope- if you disregard their fight to keep him in mainstream school (which is a whole current government agenda at the moment) they did eventually ask for help and tried to get information from taxi companies etc- but didn’t get a response that would allow them to do anymore. I know people who have requested social services remove their violent autistic children from the home (after hospitalising siblings) - and they have had an insane battle for that to happen- years of fighting, much longer than the timescale and escalation in this case. Even if his parents had shouted from the rooftops from day dot when he got excluded from Range, it’s likely he would have still been at home on the day of the attack.

ETA: for the avoidance of doubt, IMO they should be held accountable, and I hope they do hold themselves accountable and live with the guilt, but I also have empathy at the lack of proper support they received. I’m not excusing their poor parenting- but it’s more complex than many realise

https://www.northyorkshire.police.uk/news/north-yorkshire/news/news/2023/02-february/incident-in-strensall-near-york/

Katie Rough death: Teen detained for life for killing

Katie Rough was found with cuts to her neck and chest on a playing field in York.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Skigh]

Robert Jenrick calls for Southport killer's parents to be deported

Unveiling his report on Monday, inquiry chair Sir Adrian Fulford said Alphonse Rudakubana, 50, and Laetitia Muyazire, 54, must take some blame for the atrocity.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Southport killer's parents should be deported to Rwanda after an inquiry criticised them for failing to stop his murder spree, Robert Jenrick has said.

Unveiling his report on Monday, inquiry chair Sir Adrian Fulford said Alphonse Rudakubana, 50, and Laetitia Muyazire, 54, must take some blame for the atrocity.

The report found that they knew Rudakubana was hoarding weapons, including machetes, for at least a year before the July 2024 attack, and had planned to target his former school the week before.