Man Who Killed 3 Girls at Taylor Swift-Themed Event Sentenced

A British teen who killed three young girls on a Taylor Swift–theme dance class will spend decades in prison.

Axel Rudakubana18, who plead guilty to the July murders in the English city of Southport not long before his scheduled trial was set to take place, will serve at least 52 years in prison.

The teenager, who was 17 when he fatally stabbed Bebe King6, Elsie Dot Stancombe7, and Alice da Silva Aguiar9, and injured 10 other people, was not present inside the Liverpool Crown Court January 23 when his sentence was read due to an outburst earlier in the hearing where he complained of feeling unwell, leading to him being escorted out.

In addition to three counts of murder, Rudakubana also pleaded guilty to 10 counts of attempted murder, one count of possession of a knife, plus possession of an Al Qaeda training manual and manufacturing the deadly poison ricin.

Judge Julian Goose said during the sentencing that Rudakubana did not receive a life sentence because he was under 18 when the attack took place, though he added, “it is likely he will never be released.”