The families of three girls murdered by Axel Rudakubana have expressed anger and accused the 19-year-old killer of attempting to "manipulate the system" following his transfer from Belmarsh prison to the high-security psychiatric hospital, Broadmoor.
The transfer occurred earlier this week, with authorities citing that Rudakubana could not be safely managed within a prison environment. Lawyer Chris Walker, representing the families, stated that the timing of the transfer, close to the second anniversary of the murders, felt like another tactic by Rudakubana. "We have been given the barest of details and whilst we are supporting the families through this we are urgently seeking a meeting with the appropriate authorities to understand the situation before commenting further," Walker said.
Despite the move to Broadmoor, the Ministry of Justice has emphasized that Rudakubana will remain securely detained for his entire 52-year custodial sentence and is "unlikely to ever be released." Rudakubana was sentenced in January 2025 to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 52 years for the murders of Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, Bebe King, six, and Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine. He also admitted to attempting to murder eight other children and two adults during the incident at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport on July 29, 2024. His convictions also include producing the biological toxin ricin and possessing an al-Qaida training manual.
Mark Fairhurst, chair of the Prison Officers' Association, criticized the transfer, suggesting Rudakubana had "played the system" to gain access to the perceived freedoms and benefits afforded to patients in secure psychiatric hospitals, which he noted are funded by taxpayers. He also raised concerns about the safety of prison staff. "My members will be placed at risk without the protections afforded to staff in prisons because he is now classed as a patient. He should spend his entire sentence in a prison in solitary confinement," Fairhurst stated.
The cost to taxpayers is also expected to increase significantly, with a place in a high-security psychiatric hospital costing over £300,000 annually, compared to approximately £60,000 for an inmate in prison.
Rudakubana's transfer follows an incident in May 2025 where he attacked a prison officer at HMP Belmarsh. Reports indicate his supervision had been downgraded shortly before the attack, where he used a kettle to scald the officer. Records also reveal a history of mental health engagement. He was under the care of Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust between 2019 and 2023, having been initially referred after bringing a knife to school and admitting intent to use it. He was also referred to the Government's Prevent counter-extremism programme on three occasions for researching school massacres and extremist ideologies, but no intervention resulted due to a lack of clear ideological motivation.
An inquiry into the Southport murders highlighted systemic failures to prevent Rudakubana's attack, citing his access to violent material, ability to purchase knives online, and unsupervised departures from home. The inquiry chair noted Rudakubana had a "known predilection for knife crime" and posed a "very serious and significant risk of violent harm."