Rudakubana ‘planned to kill as many people as he could,’ a court heard (Image: Helen Tipper / SWNS)
The parents of the Southport killer could still face criminal charges, it has emerged.
Police have confirmed they are reviewing the evidence Alphonse Rudakubana and Laetitia Muzayire provided to the public inquiry last week.
The pair spent two days giving testimony at the hearing in Liverpool Town Hall, where Mr Rudakubana, 50, admitted he “regretted not telling police” about his son Axel’s previous alarming conduct.
Merseyside Police now plan to “obtain full transcripts” of their evidence, a move welcomed by the solicitor representing the families of Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, Bebe King, six, and Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, who were killed in July last year.
The families say they feel “confident” charges will follow.
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Aware of ‘monster son’
Mr Rudakubana acknowledged under oath that he and his wife were aware their “monster” son had accumulated a collection of knives and other weapons and was plotting an attack on his former school one week before he launched the rampage in Southport, Merseyside. The couple, however, did not inform police or any other authority.
Following the couple’s testimony, the bereaved families called for the killer’s parents to be held responsible for permitting “such evil to exist under their roof”. They expressed “complete disdain” for their “excuses” at the inquiry into the atrocity, reports the Mirror.
Merseyside Police have now revealed their position. A spokesman confirmed: “We will obtain full transcripts from the inquiry and assess whether new information was provided that wasn’t known.”
Alice da Silva Aguiar died from her injuries in hospital a day after the attack (Image: AP)
Plans to attack school ‘known’
During his testimony, Mr Rudakubana stated: “I regret not telling police because if I had, what happened on 29th July, wouldn’t have happened.”
He referenced his son’s previous concerning behaviour, including plans to attack his former school.
Following this revelation, Elsie’s parents, Jenni and David Stancombe, addressed the media: “They knew how dangerous he was, yet they stayed silent. They didn’t report their concerns, they didn’t act, and in doing so, they failed not only as parents but as members of our society.”
Bebe King also died in the atrocity (Image: AP)
Decision reconsidered
Merseyside Police confirmed they were considering charges against “those who may have assisted Axel Rudakubana or failed to prevent his crimes”. This followed Rudakubana receiving a minimum 52-year sentence in January.
However, six months afterwards in June, a police spokesman announced “no further charges” would be pursued as the evidence failed to meet the “police threshold” of criminality.
This decision has now been reconsidered following fresh evidence presented at Liverpool Town Hall, according to the Daily Mail.
A yellow teddy bear,with the floral tributes on Hart Street,Southport. (Image: Liverpool Echo)
Shame of violent past
The spokesperson further stated that previously “a file wasn’t submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service because the evidence held at that time didn’t pass the police threshold meaning there was insufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of a conviction for any offence”.
Chris Walker, a solicitor with law firm Bond Turner, who represents the families of Elsie, Bebe and Alice, said: “We wish to express our full support for any reopening or re-examination of the evidence in relation to the conduct of AR’s (Axel Rudakubana’s) parents.
Axel Rudakubana during his school days (Image: Liverpool Echo)
“Any further inquiry into the behaviour in question is unequivocally supported by all of our clients.
“We are confident that a criminal investigation will conclude that an offence has been committed.”
Mr Rudakubana, whose parents and three sisters were murdered in the Rwandan civil war, confessed to the inquiry he was “ashamed” that he had allowed his son to be repeatedly violent towards him in the years preceding the attack.
Elsie Dot Stancombe was one of three children killed in the attack (Image: AP)
Unrestricted online
Neither he nor his wife restricted their son’s access to the Internet, leaving him free to look up inappropriate videos and images of war, genocide and gory injuries online.
And the disturbed youngster became reclusive and started to neglect his own personal hygiene in the months and weeks before the attack.