Skip to content 
Search

Latest Stories

Southport stabbings probe examines institutional failings

Rudakubana had repeated contact with the police, courts and welfare services as well as the government’s counter-terror programme Prevent, but all failed to spot the risk he posed.

Southport

A vigil held in Southport after the fatal stabbings last year.

Getty Images

A TWO-PHASE public inquiry began on Monday (7) into the killing of three girls in Southport last year, which triggered Britain’s worst riots in decades.

Bebe King, aged six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and nineyear-old Alice da Silva Aguiar died in the stabbing spree at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class.


 Axel Rudakubana, now 18, also attempted to kill eight other children and two adults.

He was jailed in January for a minimum of 52 years.

Launching the probe, home secretary Yvette Cooper said the first phase would “thoroughly investigate” the circumstances of the July 29 attack in the northwestern seaside town, including Rudakubana’s multiple interactions with public authorities.

Rudakubana had repeated contact with the police, courts and welfare services as well as the government’s counter-terror programme Prevent, but all failed to spot the risk he posed.

The second phase would examine the wider issue of young people being drawn towards extreme violence.

“We owe it to their families, and all those affected to quickly understand what went wrong, answer difficult questions and do everything in our power to prevent something like this from happening again,” Cooper said, describing the murders as an “unimaginable tragedy”.

After his arrest, police found violent content on Rudakubana’s devices including images of dead bodies, victims of torture, beheadings, and cartoons depicting violence and rape.

The probe, with legal powers to compel witnesses to give evidence, will be chaired by retired senior judge Adrian Fulford.

More For You

Brothers deny assaulting police during Manchester Airport brawl

Photo for representation. (iStock)

Brothers deny assaulting police during Manchester Airport brawl

TWO brothers accused of assaulting a man inside a Starbucks and later attacking police officers at Manchester Airport are standing trial, with the prosecution arguing they used "unlawful and extreme violence".

Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, and his older brother Muhammad Amaad, 26, both from Rochdale, are said to have acted aggressively on July 23 last year while at the airport to pick up their mother, who had arrived on a flight from Qatar.

Keep ReadingShow less
Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case
Bhim Kohli

Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case

THE seven-year prison sentence handed to a 15-year-old boy convicted of the manslaughter of 80-year-old Bhim Sen Kohli is to be reviewed under the UK’s Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme.

The Attorney General’s Office confirmed on Friday (5) that the teenager’s sentence will now be considered by the Court of Appeal.

Keep ReadingShow less
UK heatwave by mid-July

Daytime temperatures meeting or exceeding set thresholds of 25°C

iStock

Met Office warns of potential third UK heatwave by mid-July

Key points

  • Met Office forecasts rising temperatures by mid-July
  • Possible third heatwave after record-breaking June
  • High pressure system likely to bring hot air from the Atlantic
  • Yellow rain warning and flood alerts issued in parts of Scotland and Cumbria

Possible heatwave to return by mid-July

The UK could experience its third heatwave in a month by mid-July, the Met Office has said. Forecasters expect rising heat and humidity during the second weekend of July, following two weekends of unusually warm weather in late June.

June was officially the hottest on record in England, and the return of high temperatures could mean another heatwave for parts of the country. However, the Met Office cautioned that it is too early to confirm how hot conditions will get.

Keep ReadingShow less
crypto

Two men have been jailed for defrauding investors of £1.5 million through a fake crypto investment scheme. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Two jailed over £1.5m crypto investment scam

TWO people who duped investors of £1.5 million by selling fake investments in crypto have been jailed for 12 years, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said.

Raymondip Bedi, of Bromley, and Patrick Mavanga, of Peckham, conned at least 65 people by cold-calling them between February 2017 and June 2019. They operated companies including CCX Capital and Astaria Group LLP.

Keep ReadingShow less
Manchester Police probes over 1,000 child sexual abuse suspects

Photo for representation. (iStock)

Getty Images/iStockphoto

Manchester Police probes over 1,000 child sexual abuse suspects

GREATER MANCHESTER POLICE is now investigating more than 1,000 child sexual abuse suspects, following years of public criticism and institutional failings in tackling child sexual exploitation.

A new report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) has revealed the force has made “significant improvements” in dealing with group-based sexual abuse and related crimes.

Keep ReadingShow less