A 17-year-old lad obsessed with the Southport triple knife murder has been slapped with a three-year youth rehab order after admitting terror offences.
Disturbing Obsession with Axe Killer Axel Rudakubana
At 16, the boy idolised Axel Rudakubana, the Southport murderer, to a chilling extent. He called himself an “Axelcel” and scribbled notes calling Rudakubana “the black version of me” and “the one person I look up to.”
The teen downloaded the same al-Qaeda manual used by Rudakubana and owned extremist guides like the Anarchist Cookbook and poisons recipe for ricin. He also researched school shootings and incel misogyny, even eyeing his old school as a potential target.
Secret Recon Mission and TikTok Threat
On 13 May last year, he travelled 15 miles to Southport to scout out the area, snapping photos. He messaged a TikTok contact: “77 days until Axel 2.” His target? A Taylor Swift event on the first anniversary of Rudakubana’s attack, where three innocent kids aged 6 to 9 were killed.
Plans Unravel After 999 Call from Bathroom
The nightmare was stopped when the boy rang 999 himself from his grandparents’ bathroom on 6 August. Police found knives he’d taken from their kitchen. His devices revealed poems praising Rudakubana and notes about “Axelcels” and incel culture.
He wasn’t charged with preparing a terrorist act, as prosecutors said there was no clear ideological motive. His age and background influenced the decision, especially since misogynistic and school-targeting attacks aren’t officially labelled as ideological by the law.
Mental Health and Failed Preventive Warnings
The court heard the teen, thought to have autism like Rudakubana, was in care with mental health services and had been referred twice to the Government’s Prevent counter-terror programme. Unfortunately, no earlier action stopped his chilling plans.
Rudakubana, serving life with a 52-year minimum term, had been flagged by Prevent three times before his horrific attack but slipped through the cracks every time.
