Teen goes on trial for Southport dance studio stabbings that sparked UK riots

By Aysu Bicer

LONDON (AA) - The trial of a teenager accused of carrying out a brutal knife attack and murdering 3 children last summer at a dance studio in Southport, northwest England, is set to begin Monday at Liverpool Crown Court.

Axel Rudakubana, a British citizen born in Cardiff, Wales, faces multiple charges, including three counts of murder and 10 counts of attempted murder, following the horrifying attack on July 29.

The attack took place at Hart Space, a local sanctuary where young girls had gathered for a summer dance class.

What began as an afternoon of celebration on the first day of summer vacation ended in tragedy when Rudakubana stormed the venue, stabbing several children and their teacher.

Rudakubana, who was 17 at the time of the attack, has refused to speak in court. As a result, pleas of not guilty were entered on his behalf.

Prosecutors have not yet disclosed a motive for the rampage, but additional charges indicate potential extremist influences.

The teenager is also facing charges for possessing the deadly poison ricin and an al-Qaida manual, raising further concerns about the nature of his alleged crimes.

The trial, expected to last four weeks, is one of the most high-profile cases in the UK in recent years.

In the immediate aftermath of the attack, social media misinformation falsely identified Rudakubana—whose name was initially withheld—as an asylum-seeker who had recently arrived in Britain by boat.

This claim, which was largely shared across social media platforms, especially by far-right groups, later proven to be false, fueled widespread violence across parts of England and Northern Ireland.

Far-right groups quickly mobilized, using the false narrative to incite riots. Mosques and hotels housing migrants became targets of coordinated attacks, with rioters hurling beer bottles, rocks, and other projectiles at police officers.

Vehicles were set ablaze, and clashes erupted in dozens of cities as authorities struggled to contain the violence.

“This will be a deeply traumatic and distressing time for the families of Alice, Bebe and Elsie, the survivors, and the people of Southport and the whole country will be thinking of them," Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, said in a statement, ahead of the trial on Monday.

“The most important thing for all of us is to ensure that the legal process can take its course, to respect the difficult job the court has to do so there is a fair trial and justice can be done."

The criminal trial is expected to last from four to six weeks, according to an advisory note by the government.