Southport stabbings suspect faces separate terror charge after ricin and al Qaeda manual found at home
The teenager accused of stabbing three girls to death in Southport faces a separate terror charge after police said a biological toxin and an al Qaeda training manual were found in a search of his home.
Axel Rudakubana, 18, from Lancashire, had already been charged with three counts of murder and 10 counts of attempted murder following the mass stabbing at a Taylor Swift-themed dance workshop in July.
At a briefing today, Chief Constable Serena Kennedy from Merseyside Police said the teenager now faces two further charges related to evidence obtained by police following searches of his home after the attacks.
She said he now faces one charge of the “production of a biological toxin, namely ricin, contrary to Section 1 of the Biological Weapons Act 1974”.
He also faces a terror charge of possession of information “likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, contrary to Section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000”.
The victims of the attack from left: Elsie Dot Stancombe, Alice da Silva Aguiar and Bebe King.
Pic: Merseyside Police
She added that this charge relates to a PDF file entitled “Military Studies in the Jihad Against the Tyrants: The Al-Qaeda Training Manual”.
However, police have not declared the events of 29 July a terrorist incident.
“For a matter to be declared as a terrorist incident, motivation would need to be established,” Chief Constable Kennedy said.
Health officials added that there was no evidence of ricin poisoning at the dance event where the attack took place, or that any members of the public were exposed to the toxin.
“Following the events of Monday 29 July, searches of Axel Rudakubana’s home resulted in an unknown substance being found. Testing confirmed the substance as ricin,” Chief Constable Kennedy said.
“We have worked extensively with partners to establish there was a low to very low risk to the public and I want to make that reassurance clear today.”
Ricin was confirmed to have been found at Rudakubana’s home after scientists from the government’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory carried out tests on the evidence.
Axel Rudakubana when he was younger
Dr Renu Bindra, from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), said experts from the agency “immediately undertook a thorough public health risk assessment” after police alerted them to the presence of ricin at the property in early August.
She continued: “There was no evidence that any victims, responders or members of the public were exposed to ricin, either as part of the incident or afterwards.
“Our detailed initial risk assessment judged that the risk to the community, and to the wider public, was low.”
Rudakubana will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court via videolink tomorrow in relation to the latest charges.
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Flowers laid in Southport after the deaths of the three girls. Pic: AP
Girls killed and children injured
The three girls who died in the Southport attack were named as six-year-old Bebe King, seven-year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe and nine-year-old Alice da Silva Aguiar.
Eight other children were stabbed in the attack at The Hart Space community centre in the Merseyside town.
Five of them were left in a critical condition. Two adults who were trying to protect the children were also left in a critical condition.
Rudakubana, who was 17 at the time, was arrested on suspicion of carrying out the attack the same day.
Emergency services close to the scene after the Southport stabbing attack. Pic: PA
It was followed by days of far-right riots up and down the UK after misinformation online said the suspect was an asylum seeker who arrived in the UK by boat.
However, it later emerged that Rudakubana was born in Cardiff in Wales.
Nearly 400 people have so far been jailed for offences relating to the disorder, the government has said.
Police have made a direct appeal to those involved in the murder of a teenager to finally bring her family closure, exactly 30 years after she disappeared.
Lindsay Rimer, 13, went out to buy a box of Corn Flakes late in the evening on 7 November 1994 and never returned home. Her body was found in a canal close to her home six months later.
Lindsay’s family have also marked this year’s anniversary with a renewed appeal for information from the public, particularly in the town of Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire where Lindsay lived and died.
“This person should be in prison, not us because that’s where we feel we’ve been for the last 30 years,” her sister Kate Rimer told Sky News.
Juliet Rimer was just one when her sister was killed but has recently been reading letters and diaries to gain a better understanding of a life cut short.
“It’s just, it’s a bit of a horror film that we have to do this,” she said. “The fact that I had a sister that I never knew who was murdered, I just can’t wrap my head around that. It’s had a massive impact on me.”
Lindsay months before her death
Kate, who played the part of her sister in a police reconstruction a year after her disappearance, says the family believes someone has information that could lead to her killer’s arrest.
“It’s usually been my mum who does this but the emotional toll it’s taken on my parents means that they just can’t do this anymore.
“It’s incredibly emotional, it opens everything up, and it reflects back over 30 years ago and everything that we lived through then. And just the horror of a loved family member, a child being murdered, is a really bizarre situation. You live your normal life around that and then we’re opening up again to bring murder and death back into our family.”
In the years since Lindsay’s disappearance, police have spoken to more than 5,000 people and examined 1,200 vehicles. Two men were arrested and later released.
A new sighting of Lindsay after she left the convenience shop on the night she disappeared has been confirmed and police believe those in the community have vital information.
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Juliet, left, and Kate Rimer speak to Sky News this month
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Detective Chief Inspector James Entwistle of West Yorkshire Police made a direct appeal to those who were involved in killing and disposing of her body.
“Has this been on your conscience for thirty years?” he said.
“It’s perfectly possible there’s more than one person involved, its perfectly possible there’s a vehicle involved. Maybe you didn’t murder Lindsay but you know exactly who did because you were there and that’s sat on your conscience for 30 years.
“Now is the time to come and talk to us, now is the time to draw a line under this and bring that closure for Lindsay’s family.”
New posters featuring Lindsay’s picture have gone up around Hebden Bridge as part of the appeal for information and an increased police presence will be in the town.
Juliet said: “It has been 30 years but Lindsey didn’t deserve this and we owe it to her as her family to keep doing this.”
Lucy Letby suggested she could give “tips” to a colleague on how to get away with murder, a public inquiry has heard.
The child serial killer exchanged WhatsApp messages in 2017 with union rep Hayley Griffiths about the US legal drama How To Get Away With Murder.
The discussion took place a year after the neonatal nurse was moved to clerical duties at the Countess of Chester Hospital following concerns she may have been deliberately harming babies.
In a message to Letby, Ms Griffiths wrote: “I’m currently watching a programme called how to get away with murder. I’m learning some good tips.”
Letby replied: “I could have given you some tips x”
Ms Griffiths said: “I need someone to practice on to see if I can get away with it.”
Letby wrote: “I can think of two people you could practice on and will help you cover it up x”
Ms Griffiths replied: “Deal. I will get thinking of a plan. Get the cruise booked as our getaway.”
The pair were working in the hospital’s risk and patient safety department a year before Letby was arrested on suspicion of multiple murders by Cheshire Police.
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How the police caught Lucy Letby
Ms Griffiths said she was aware of the concerns of foul play and the connection to Letby by September 2016.
Shahram Sharghy, representing some of the families of Letby’s victims, asked: “Given the severity of the allegations that were made, and would you agree they are possibly the most serious allegations that anybody could make against a healthcare professional, were you making light of those allegations when you were referring to potentially committing a crime?”
Ms Griffiths answered: “No.”
Mr Sharghy asked: “Can you even begin to imagine and put yourself in the position of the families of the babies who were harmed when they see those messages?”
Ms Griffiths said: “I know… I am so remorseful. As soon as I saw them myself I was upset and I can’t begin to imagine… I can only apologise and say I have learned. I can’t go back in time but I have reflected absolutely on it.”
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Earlier, Ms Griffiths told counsel to the inquiry Rachel Langdale KC: “It was nothing more than a conversation. However, I truly and deeply regret having started that conservation… this is completely unprofessional, poor judgement on my behalf and completely insensitive. And for that, I can only apologise from the bottom of my heart.”
Letby, 34, from Hereford, is currently serving 15 whole-life orders.
She was convicted at Manchester Crown Court of murdering seven infants and attempting to murder six others between June 2015 and June 2016.
The Thirlwall Inquiry into the events surrounding her crimes is expected to sit until early 2015. The findings are expected by late autumn that year.
UK
Newcastle: Three men arrested in connection with deadly house explosion and on suspicion of cannabis production
Three men have been arrested in connection with a deadly house explosion in Newcastle.
Seven-year-old Archie York and Jason Laws, who was in his 30s, were killed following the blast in Violet Close, in the Benwell and Elswick area of the city in October.
Police said at the time that six others were taken to hospital “with varying injuries” after the blast and subsequent fire.
Three men – two in their 30s and one in his 50s – have been arrested on suspicion of two counts of manslaughter, and the production of a Class B drug, namely cannabis, Northumbria Police said.
They all remain in police custody.
Detective Chief Inspector Katie Smith said: “This has been a truly tragic incident which resulted in the loss of two lives.
“As a result of our ongoing enquiries, three men have today been arrested in connection with the explosion.
“Our investigation will remain ongoing as we seek to provide answers to what has happened.
“We would continue to ask people to avoid speculation surrounding this incident both online and in the community.”
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From October: Deadly blast destroys Newcastle house
The blast tore through a row of six properties divided into two flats each.
Drone footage showed how six flats in the middle of the building appeared to have been completely destroyed by the explosion and fire, while piles of debris could be seen in the street outside.
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Superintendent Darren Adams, from Northumbria Police, said on the day of the fire: “As a result of the incident in the early hours of this morning, a seven-year-old boy has sadly passed away.
“Despite the efforts of the emergency services, he tragically died at the scene.
“This is a truly devastating outcome.”
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