The grandfather of a girl stabbed by Axel Rudakubana criticized authorities for failing to recognize the threat he posed. He called for the firing of officials linked to the case and condemned the anti-extremism program, Prevent, for not doing enough to prevent violence. He accused Sir Keir Starmer of prioritizing his image over transparency regarding the incident, which left children dead and families devastated. Rudakubana, known to counter-terrorism police and diagnosed with autism, had multiple prior warnings, leading the grandfather to question the communication failures among agencies. He demanded accountability, emphasizing the trauma suffered by families and the community.
The grandfather of a girl who survived being stabbed by Axel Rudakubana yesterday called for the firing of everyone who did not realize the deadly threat he posed.
In a strong intervention, he argued that the Southport family had been let down by the authorities who were meant to protect their daughters before and after the July 29 atrocity.
First of all, he cited the anti-extremism program Prevent three times for not doing more to stop killers obsessed with violence and brutality.
And secondly, he failed to disclose after his arrest that the Cardiff-born teenager was known to counter-terrorism police and that the deadly ricin had been found in a search of his home after the attack.
He also angrily accused Sir Keir Starmer of “choosing to protect himself” rather than revealing the truth about the culprit sooner.
“I think things would have been different if they had confessed that this was a terrorist incident instead of doubling down on the far-right talk,” says the grandfather, whose surviving children cannot be identified because they all died. Anonymity granted.
“We were not taken care of and pushed to the side of the road.
“People talked about the riots and what happened to us was forgotten. We were abandoned.”
Yesterday, the grandfather of the girl who survived being stabbed by Axel Rudakubana (pictured) called for the firing of everyone who did not realize the deadly threat he posed.
He also angrily accused Sir Keir Starmer (pictured) of “choosing to protect himself” rather than revealing the truth about the killer sooner.
A car goes up in flames on Parliament Road in Middlesbrough during a protest after a stabbing in Southport last year.
Mr Rudakhbana was not charged with carrying out the attack as police found no evidence that he was motivated by ideology, but the prime minister acknowledged yesterday that “terrorism has changed”.
Lord Keir said the law may need to be changed to express the threat posed by “loners, misfits and young people in the bedroom” who are obsessed with extreme violence.
In the aftermath of the attack, Bebe King, 6, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Alice da Silva Aguiar, 9, were among the families whose lives were forever changed by the attack. Some people immediately suspected terrorism.
“Some of the family members were suspicious from the beginning, but they gassed him,” the grandfather told the Daily Mail.
“Some people thought we should trust the authorities. There was a lot of speculation and conjecture for all of us.
“But as information started coming in, everything people suspected turned out to be true, and everyone wondered why it had been hidden.”
Rudakubana, who had been diagnosed with autism, had been referred to Prevent three times, as well as receiving support from children’s social care and mental health services.
The grandfather said it was a failure for the authorities to not do more to stop the killer, who was obsessed with violence and barbarism, and said he referred to the anti-extremism program Prevent three times. Photo: Keir Starmer’s statement
Rudakubana, who was diagnosed with autism, had been referred to Prevent three times, as well as receiving support from children’s social care and mental health services. Photo: Court artist sketch of Rudakubana appearing at Liverpool Court
Additionally, he was expelled from Range High School in Formby at the age of 13 for bringing a knife and attacking a student with a hockey stick, and was under the supervision of the Youth Justice Service.
With so many government agencies involved, the grandfather believes this atrocity “should never have happened.”
“There are too many missed opportunities, organizations are not communicating with each other, there is a lack of competent staff, and people are stepping on eggshells over political correctness rather than dealing with him.” “There is,” he said.
Rumors that the biotoxin ricin had been found in Rudakbana’s bedroom soon began to spread in Southport, but this discovery, along with the fact that Rudakbana was accused of downloading al-Qaeda training manuals, was announced on October 29. It was not open to the public until today.
Seven-year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe was among three girls killed in Southport attack.
Alice da Silva Aguiar, 9, was one of three children killed in a knife attack in Southport.
Six-year-old Bebe King was also killed in a knife attack at Heart Space in Southport.
“I don’t understand why the government didn’t reveal the truth from day one,” the grandfather says. Before the bombshell claim of possessing terrorist materials was announced, the family members were “told not to talk about it.”
“Most of us were of the opinion that someone higher up than Merseyside Police or the CPS had previously intervened and quelled it.
“But when they said they had decided not to put the information into the public domain, it confirmed our suspicions that everyone was being fooled.
“We are all just pawns in Starmer’s chess.”
A day after the attack, hours before riots erupted at a local mosque following rumors on social media, Sir Keir traveled to Southport to lay flowers and was met by a hostile crowd.
“We were watching it from our granddaughter’s hospital bed,” the grandfather recalls.
“He showed up, kind of threw flowers on the floor.
“There were some of the victims’ nans, grandparents, aunts and uncles in that crowd and they didn’t feel heard.
“I think that’s what inspired some people to riot, people who had no intention of rioting before.”
The grandfather believes his family would have been better served if the truth had come out along with the police’s findings.
“We had to fight for everything,” he says. “This had a huge impact on the whole community, but only the parents were helped.
“This means that while we are all traumatized and suffering from what happened, our in-laws, aunts and uncles, and grandparents are all struggling.”
For some families, one of the few authority figures willing to listen to them was King Charles, who met privately with relatives on August 20.
“He came and spent an hour and 40 minutes with everyone, much longer than planned, talked to all the parents and even gave us some orange juice to give to the kids,” the grandfather said.
“I think this has shown us that we need more people who care about us.”
Grandparents welcomed a public inquiry but said the results could not be any more difficult.
“We don’t want to hear thoughts and prayers and ‘lessons will be learned,'” he said.
“We want all employees who made the mistake to be fired.”
