On 29 July 2024, a mass stabbing targeting young girls occurred at the Hart Space in Southport, Merseyside. Two girls died at the scene, six injured children and two adults were taken to hospital in critical condition, and a third girl died the following day. Rudakubana was arrested at the scene and charged with three counts of murder, ten counts of attempted murder, and possession of a bladed article. He was later separately charged under the Biological Weapons Act 1974 and Terrorism Act 2000 in relation to possession of ricin and a military study of an Al-Qaeda training manual.
Axel Rudakubana is now serving a life sentence with a minimum term of 52 years for the murders and attempted murders. He pleaded guilty to all 16 charges on 20 January 2025, having initially entered a not-guilty plea. Prosecutors say he researched atrocities committed by others and 'set out to emulate them'. No motive for the stabbings was identified; the prosecution suggested motivation could have been 'the commission of mass murder as an end in itself' and no evidence of terrorism was found. The Rudakubana family sought asylum in the UK after fleeing the genocide in Rwanda, according to multiple reports.
The Hart Space is a community studio venue on Hart Street in Meols Cop, Southport, hosting yoga, dance, pregnancy, and baby and toddler classes. The workshop was organised by yoga teacher Leanne Lucas and Heidi Liddle, advertised as a yoga, dance, and bracelet-making workshop themed around Taylor Swift. It was aimed at children ages 6–11, scheduled for 29 July between 10:00 and 12:00 BST, and was sold-out by 18 July. Shortly before 11:45, Axel Rudakubana arrived at Hart Street by taxi booked under the false name 'Simon'. His target was a group of young girls making friendship bracelets while singing Taylor Swift songs at a fully-booked school holiday event in Southport, according to research sources.
CCTV and police body camera footage showed the attacker entering the building where the children were gathered. Witnesses described seeing the attacker lunging through the group armed with a large kitchen knife. Many of the children sustained wounds to the back as they tried to flee. During the attack, eight girls (ages 7 to 13), instructor Leanne Lucas, and Jonathan Hayes were wounded. Injuries to two victims were 'difficult to explain as anything other than sadistic in nature', according to prosecutor Deanna Heer KC.
An inquiry found that the family, together with authorities, could have prevented the attack. Sir Adrian Fulford's report listed five major areas of systemic failure across multiple agencies. The five key failures included: absence of risk ownership, critical failures in information sharing, misunderstanding of autism, lack of oversight of online activity, and significant parental failures. If the family's concerns had been shared with authorities in late July 2024, the tragedy would almost certainly have been prevented, according to Sir Adrian Fulford. The lawyer representing the families said the killings were 'not only predictable, they were preventable'.
According to multiple reports, Axel Rudakubana's parents knew he was hoarding weapons, including machetes, for at least a year before the attack. The parents saw weapons and ingredients for ricin in his bedroom and found packaging for a knife on the day of the attack but did not report it, according to major media sources. Sir Adrian recommended the Law Commission consider whether parents should have a legal duty to report children's criminality. There is 'no current legal duty on bystanders and/or parents to warn or report criminality', according to a Merseyside Police spokesperson. Lawyer Chris Walker called for Rudakubana's parents to be jailed for failing to stop the attack, while parents of two surviving sisters said people should be forced by law to report their children's criminality or face jail.
Rudakubana had been referred to the Prevent counter-terrorism program three times. Prevent refused to escalate concerns because Rudakubana did not present a coherent ideology. Rudakubana downloaded an Al-Qaeda training manual and accessed violent online material. About 40 minutes before he left home, he searched social media for a video of the stabbing of Sydney bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel, according to research sources. A video of Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel being stabbed in Sydney, which reportedly inspired Rudakubana, was removed by TikTok after backlash, according to major media reports. TikTok and Meta stated the video had been removed, but the Mirror found it still visible on an account until TikTok removed it after contact, according to multiple reports.
It's a good thing those children are dead, I'm so glad, I'm so happy.
Merseyside police investigated the parents but confirmed there was not enough evidence to prosecute. He was later separately charged under the Biological Weapons Act 1974 and Terrorism Act 2000 in relation to possession of ricin and a military study of an Al-Qaeda training manual, according to research sources. The specific disciplinary actions against officials named in the inquiry report have not been publicly detailed.
According to major media reports, the Rudakubana family left their home in Banks, Merseyside, nearly two years ago and have not returned. Some neighbors in Banks did not know the Rudakubana family well, as they kept to themselves, according to multiple reports. A few families left the area after the attack due to distress, according to major media sources.
Many organisations named in the report have apologised, and the prime minister promised 'fundamental changes', according to research sources. Prime Minister Keir Starmer promised to overhaul terrorism laws to include non-ideological acts of violence and appointed David Anderson to lead a review of Prevent. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said legislation will be brought forward to deal with those planning attacks without an underlying ideology. The crime caused 'shock and revulsion to the nation' and is 'a very extreme level of crime', according to Judge Julian Gooose.
Vera Baird KC said officials who made errors should be held personally accountable. Chris Walker said he would name and shame individual managers at agencies if disciplinary actions were not satisfactory. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said a former headteacher was pressured by mental health services to 'minimise the danger posed by Rudakubana because of his ethnicity'. Philp said failure to provide information early after the attack gave room to 'untrue speculation online... which fuelled the riots'.
The inquiry's phase one focused on policing, criminal justice, and agencies involved; phase two will look into extremism among young people. The inquiry report was 763 pages long, according to major media reports.
The day after the attack, rioters clashed with police in Southport and damaged a mosque after misinformation about the attacker's identity was spread online, according to research sources. Over the next few days, mass anti-immigration protests and riots spread nationwide. How exactly this misinformation spread online and who was primarily responsible for it remains unclear.
The current status of the legal reforms proposed by Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Sir Adrian Fulford regarding parental duties to report criminality has not been specified. What measures TikTok and Meta have implemented to prevent the re-uploading of violent content like the Sydney stabbing video also remains unknown.