Southport suspect Axel Rudakubana pictured for first time after triple murder charge | UK | News

A 17-year-old boy accused of murdering three girls killed in a stabbing attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport has been pictured for the first time.

The suspect was identified as Axel Rudakubana after a judge lifted reporting restrictions at a hearing at Liverpool Crown Court on Thursday (August 1).

Liverpool judge Andrew Menary KC made the decision before remanding him in custody at a youth detention centre and refusing him bail.

Mr Rudakubana spent the 55-minute hearing completely covering his face with his grey sweatshirt pulled up to his hairline. He could sometimes be seen rocking back and forth and from side to side.

He is due to appear again at Liverpool Crown Court on October 25. A provisional trial date, lasting six weeks, was set for January 20 next year.

Judge Menary told the defendant, who did not respond to the judge and kept his head down: “You are being remanded in custody in a youth detention centre until the end of these proceedings.

“This position could change when you come of age in a short time.”

Mr Rudakubana will be 18 next Wednesday (August 7). He was born in Cardiff to Rwandan parents and was living in the village of Banks, just outside Southport, at the time of the attack.

He has an older brother, who was also born in the Welsh capital, according to reports.

A neighbour of the family, who lived there, told the BBC of her shock, adding: “They were a lovely young couple. They were little boys, they were boisterous.

“Mom was a stay-at-home mom. Dad was nice. He went to work every day. They had a little family car, a little sedan.”

Another former neighbour of Mr Rudakubana’s family described him as a “quiet” boy who clung to his mother as a child.

A 51-year-old teaching assistant who lives opposite the family’s former home told the Daily Telegraph: “There was no trouble at all while they lived here – they were a friendly couple with two little boys. I can’t believe what’s happened.”

Sensei Chico Mbakwe, an instructor in Cardiff, said Mr Rudakubana accompanied his father to karate classes when he was a child.

He said: “He would come and do the corrections and his father would take him home. I don’t even really remember the boy, but I vaguely remember the father.”

“The last time I saw my father, he was taking part in his assessment, he was not my student, he was someone else’s. I told him: ‘You can continue, but even if you have an idea and you put it into action now, I will still fail you.’

“He told me he wanted his money back. Once you pay, there’s normally no refund, but I told him, ‘Give him his money back and tell him to leave.’ That’s the last time I saw him.”

The family reportedly moved to the Southport area around 2013 and lived in a semi-detached property in a quiet cul-de-sac in Banks.

According to the Liverpool Echo, neighbours said the family were “very involved in the local church” and often heard singing from their home. The Times reported that Mr Rudakubana had a background in musical theatre.

A friend from his musical theatre troupe told the newspaper that he “came to class one day and they said, ‘Welcome him, because he’s just moved from so far away.'”

He is said to have been performing in a musical at the Shaftesbury Theatre in the West End. His friend said: “I think he was more trying to get out of his comfort zone and meet kids from the community… He enjoyed it but, you know, kids who go to musicals… they’re very outgoing. He wasn’t. He was very quiet. He didn’t really talk about himself.”

The friend said he “didn’t mention Rwanda” but “you could clearly tell from his accent.”

They added: “The brother was much more talkative… His father seemed quite educated and presentable.”