Police did not think Axel Rudakubana would be radicalised, leaked report shows
Police did not think Axel Rudakubana would be radicalised, leaked report shows
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Counterterrorism officers did not believe Southport killer Axel Rudakubana was “in danger of being radicalised”, leaks from a Home Office report have revealed. The Prevent learning review will criticise counterterrorism officers for failing to properly take into account Rudakubana’s obsession with extreme violence when it is released, the Sunday Times has reported.
The 18-year-old was given a life sentence with a minimum term of 52 years on Thursday – one of the highest minimum terms on record – for murdering Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, at a dance class in Southport on July 29 last year.
He also attempted to murder eight other children, who cannot be named for legal reasons, class instructor Leanne Lucas and businessman John Hayes. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has already announced that a public inquiry will be held to look at any “missed opportunities” to identify Rudakubana’s murderous intent and ordered a “thorough review” of the Prevent referrals.
Writing in the Sunday Times, she said a review of referral thresholds to Prevent was under way. This will look in particular at individuals “obsessed with school massacres” and also “Islamist extremism”, she said. “Where individuals are suspected to be neurodiverse, interventions should not stop because they are awaiting assessments, ignoring any risks they might pose,” she added.
