Teen Killer's Sentence to be Reviewed After MP Calls it "Unduly Lenient

Axel Rudakubana, an 18-year-old, was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of three young girls and the stabbing of several others during a Taylor Swift-themed dance class. He was sentenced in his absence after failing to return to the dock.

Rudakubana avoided a whole-life tariff, which would have ensured he could never leave prison, because he was nine days shy of being 18 when he committed the crime. The 52-year sentence is a record length for a person of his age.

Southport's Labour MP Patrick Hurley has asked the Attorney General to review the sentence as "unduly lenient." The Attorney General and Solicitor General now have 28 days to decide whether to refer the sentence to the Court of Appeal.

The families of Rudakubana's victims shared their pain and anger inside Liverpool Crown Court. Mother of murdered seven-year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe, Jenny, described the attack as "the act of a coward" and said Rudakubana was "cruel and pure evil.