Detective Superintendent Jason Pye, leading the investigation into the Southport attack, expressed a desire to label the July 29 mass killing as terrorism. Pye believed this classification would have granted more time to interrogate suspect Axel Rudakbana, then 17. The attack, which resulted in the deaths of three children, has sparked debate over its classification. Prosecutors stated Rudakbana’s motives didn’t reflect known political or religious ideologies, thus disqualifying it as terrorism legally. Despite this, Judge Goose acknowledged the severity of Rudakbana’s actions as equivalent to terrorism. Calls for revisiting the legal definition of terrorism have intensified in response to the incident.
The lead detective investigating the Southport attack has revealed he wanted to label the mass killing as terrorism.
Metropolitan Police Superintendent Jason Pye said he would have been “glad” if the July 29 assault had been declared a terrorist attack “all day long” as it would have given him more time to question Axel Rudakbana, who was 17 at the time. .
This follows growing controversy over whether the brutality at the dance studio should have been classified as an act of terrorism.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage this week accused the government of a “massive cover-up from day one” and claimed authorities “refused to classify the murder as terrorism-related for fear of the reaction”. did.
Prosecutors argued that Rudakbana’s crimes were not motivated by any known political or religious ideology and therefore did not meet the legal requirements to be considered terrorism.
But today at Liverpool Crown Court, Mr Justice Goose, who sentenced Mr Rudakubana to life imprisonment, said his “sadistic” attempted mass murder was “tantamount” to an act of terrorism.
DCI Pai revealed how the investigation team was working on why the incident was not declared a terrorist incident, with officers trying to figure out how the massacre “looked like that” and how it “was “Does it sound like that?” he said.
The lead detective investigating the Southport attack has revealed he wanted to label the mass killing as terrorism. Police Inspector Jason Pye (pictured) said he would be “happy” if the July 29 riot was classified as a terrorist attack.
Crown prosecutor Jason Pye said he would have been given more time to cross-examine then-17-year-old Axel Rudakubana (pictured), who was sentenced to life imprisonment at Liverpool Crown Court on Thursday.
Prosecutors argued that Rudakbana’s crimes were not motivated by any known political or religious ideology and therefore did not meet the legal requirements to be considered terrorism. Photo: Court artist sketch of Rudakubana appearing at Liverpool Court
He said the gunman had “undoubtedly incited terrorism” and acknowledged that even relatives of the victims of last July’s atrocity had asked tough questions about whether police were “hidden” the motive for the attack.
Mr Justice Goose said he “must accept” that the attack “does not meet the definition of an act of terrorism within the meaning of the Bill as there is no evidence that it was aimed at furthering any particular political or ideological objective”. said.
“However, the gravity of his crime is on a par with terrorist murder, whatever the motive,” he added.
Sir Keir Starmer said on Tuesday that “terrorism has changed” and the threat from “loners, misfits and young people in the bedroom” needed to be taken more seriously and that laws may need to be changed. said.
In his first interview about the biggest incident of his career, DCI Pai spoke about the early morning hours and days after the attack, saying his team was assessing whether it was a terrorist attack “almost every day.”
“We sat here as an investigative team and talked about what it looks like, what it sounds like, and what the public would say it is,” he said.
“You know, we’ve been scratching our heads for a long time, why not?
“I was being evaluated almost every day. Is this terrorism?”
Alice da Silva Aguiar, 9, was one of three children killed in a knife attack in Southport.
Seven-year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe was also fatally injured in the attack that shocked the nation.
Six-year-old Bebe King was killed in the attack. A 17-year-old suspect charged with three counts of murder appeared in court.
DCI Pai continued to press the point even as information came in about the discovery of a substance believed to be the deadly biotoxin ricin in Rudakbana’s bedroom and his study of al-Qaeda training manuals he had downloaded. said.
“I’m saying, ‘Isn’t this already terrorism?'” he said.
He revealed that his family had questioned police about whether they were “hiding” the truth, asking, “Why don’t you want to call it an act of terrorism?”
But he stressed that calling it a terrorist attack would have been appropriate for the investigation team.
Pictured: Police in Hart Street, Southport, Merseyside, after the attack.
“All day long, I would have been happy if someone had said it was a terrorist attack,” DCI Pai said.
Had this happened, police would have held Mr Rudakhbana for up to two weeks, rather than the standard maximum of 72 hours, before seeking permission to prosecute him.
Rather, as the clock ticked down, nearly 80 officers from Merseyside Police worked around the clock to ensure that a 17-year-old boy was mentally and mentally ill before being charged with three murders. This meant that issues such as whether health was a factor needed to be addressed. and 10 attempted murder cases.
“So it was of no benefit to us that this was never called terrorism,” he added.
“It would definitely mean I had time to do more.”
DCI Pai stressed that all available resources were committed to the investigation and that the terrorism link would not have affected the investigation.
He defended his team’s decision, arguing that Rudakbana’s motives did not involve any particular political or religious ideology and therefore did not amount to terrorism from a legal perspective.
“I think there’s no question that he provoked the terror, that was the primary element, that’s what he did.
“He caused mass murder. I don’t think there’s any question about community violence.
“The third part must be political and religious.” [ideology] And we still don’t understand it.
DCI Pai said Rudakbana’s bombshell statement, which was supposed to be the first day of the trial, came as a surprise to him as well as everyone else in the courtroom.
Asked about Rudakbana’s motive for changing his plea, he said: “In my opinion, maybe he’s trying to control it, but again, unless he speaks out, we won’t be able to control it.” We’ll never know.”
He described the vile attacks on children, which have shocked the world, as “the worst evil in the world” and “the best of the world coming together”.
DCI Pai also said that Rudakbana’s actions in deleting his internet browsing history minutes before launching the attack meant that although officers did not know what sites he was looking at, he did not access the dark web. He said there was no.
Instead, all the material he downloaded about wars, atrocities, and genocide came through Google and Bing.