Southport Killer Has Tricked His Way Into Broadmoor, Say Victims’ Families

Southport killer has tricked his way into Broadmoor, say victims’ families

Bereaved relatives accuse Axel Rudakubana of ‘manipulating system’ with transfer from high-security jail to psychiatric hospital

TOM MCARDLE

Rudakubana, 19 – who murdered three girls and tried to kill eight other children at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class – was moved from Belmarsh prison to Broadmoor after medics assessed that he could no longer be treated adequately for his mental health.

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Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, said she was “very concerned” that Rudakubana had been transferred.

She added: “Broadmoor is a hospital for prisoners but it is a lot more expensive, about five times more expensive, I believe, than having someone in Belmarsh. So I hope that this is looked at.”

Mrs Badenoch added that because “Axel Rudakubana committed one of the most horrific crimes that this country has ever seen” he should not “be able to game the system, if that is what is happening”.

Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, said: “Axel Rudakubana has been moved from prison to a psychiatric hospital, where he will be treated as a patient, not a prisoner.

“During the trial, his own defence lawyer did not submit a psychiatric report. This outrageous decision must be reversed.”

Zia Yusuf, Reform’s home affairs spokesman, wrote on X: “He must not be considered a patient. He is a prisoner. Whatever treatment is deemed necessary must never come at the expense of justice. This is a sickening disgrace.”

In January, Rudakubana was jailed for a minimum of 52 years for the murders of Alice da Silva Aguiar, aged nine, Bebe King, six, and seven-year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe, and the attempted murders of eight other children, dance class instructor Leanne Lucas and businessman John Hayes in July 2024.

He was also convicted of producing ricin, possessing terrorist material and possessing a knife.

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