Families of Southport victims "aghast" after wannabe copycat walks free
A teenager who idolised the Southport killer was spared jail
Hello and welcome to the midweek edition of The Southport Lead.
Last week at Liverpool Crown Court, a teenager who idolised and spoke about plans to emulate the Southport killer was sentenced for possessing terrorist material. The details of the case are every bit as shocking as you might expect, from the nature of his discussions and plans to the failure to address his behaviour at an earlier stage.
Now, the families of the three girls killed in Southport have spoken of their disgust that the boy was allowed to walk free and raised concerns over whether the lessons learned from the losses of the children are truly being heeded.
Southport Briefing
🎂 A former Royal Marine was inundated with cards, presents and visitors as he celebrated his 100th birthday. Stan Woolley celebrated his big day at Ivy Gate Lodge Care Home on Saturday and received visits from those involved in the Royal British Legion as well as members of the community from local schools and nurseries. In response to an appeal from care home worker Rave Wilson, Stan also received more than 600 cards, including some from as far as Canada and New Zealand. A spokesperson for the home said: ““We would just like to say a massive thank you to everyone who turned up for Stan on Saturday! We couldn’t be more proud of all of our staff at Ivy Gate Lodge Care Home, you have done us all so proud! Thank you to everyone else who has made this day special for Stan on his big achievement [...] We can’t believe the turnout, it really was amazing! We are glad to say that Stan has thoroughly enjoyed himself.”
⚽ An indoor football skills park will open at Ocean Plaza this spring. Footy Nation is a first of its kind attraction in the UK and will offer football challenge games including Match Ball, Curve Ball, Score Ball, Kick Ball, Spin Ball and Pin Ball. It had been due to open last year leading to questions about whether it was still being developed but its owners now say it will open this year. Operations manager Steve Allen said: “We’ve reimagined the world’s most popular sport and brought it indoors to create a next-level football skills park like no other. We’re so excited to bring this new soccer gaming zone to life in Southport. No more training on rainy pitches, this is a purpose-built centre designed to develop essential footy skills in a way that’s dynamic, competitive and, most importantly, fun.”
Families of Southport attack victims fear lessons not learned as terror teen walks free
The parents of the three girls killed in the Southport attack say they are “extremely alarmed” after a wannabe copycat was not imprisoned.
The families of Elsie, Bebe and Alice released a joint statement through their legal team this week following the sentence of a 17-year-old boy who idolised the killer and had also been referred to the Government’s anti-terror Prevent programme without any action being taken.
They said they were left “aghast” after learning that someone who confessed to similar plans and beliefs as the killer of their children was not intercepted earlier and was then allowed to walk free from court. Their legal team is now planning to contact the chair of The Southport Inquiry, which is looking into how the attack was able to happen, about their concerns over this case.
The teenager, also from Merseyside, cannot be named due to his age but was sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court last week having told police he wanted to emulate the Southport killer Axel Rudakubana. He pleaded guilty to four counts of possessing information likely to be useful to a person planning or committing an act of terrorism.
Police attended his home in August 2025 after he called 999 and explained that he was contemplating carrying out a terror attack but could not leave due to being locked in the house. During this visit, officers found a bag containing kitchen knives and an investigation was carried out by North West Counter Terrorism Police.
In notes found on his phone, he described the killer as a “hero” and declared that loved and looked up to him. Online, he spoke of plans to carry out his own attack on children and was also said to have researched other mass killers and bragged about watching videos of ISIS killings online. Like the Southport killer, he was found to have illegally downloaded an Al Qaeda training manual and instructions for preparing ricin.
In January, he pleaded guilty to four counts of possessing a document or record for terrorist purposes after downloading handbooks and other documentation related to terrorism. During his sentencing, it was found that the boy had twice been referred to Prevent
As reported by the BBC, the first referral came in 2021 when his school raised concerns about his admiration for ISIS but it was concluded that his behaviour was driven by autism rather than ideology and that there were no ongoing counter-terrorism concerns. A second referral followed in May last year in relation to him discussing the Southport attack and the Manchester Arena bombing and was still being considered at the time of the 999 call.
A month after the referral, he had told a friend online that he hoped his case would be closed like Rudakubana’s with “no clear ideology”.
In a joint statement, the three families expressed their horror at hearing the case had not been taken more seriously by the authorities earlier. They said: “Elsie, Bebe and Alice were failed at every possible point - failed by the very professionals and agencies who should have protected them. Had they acted decisively, our children would still be alive.
“Yet we now face the reality that a 17‑year‑old boy has admitted these offences, expressed ideologies aligned with AR - and still walks free. This is about repeated failures by agencies and professionals who knew better, and still did nothing.
“Our only hope through the inquiry was that no other families would have to endure what we have. But, the events relating to this teenager give us real concerns that changes that we were told have occurred, appear to fail again.”
Prosecutors said they acknowledged that the boy’s motivation for calling 999 in August may have been, in part, to alert the authorities to his desire to harm others, and to seek assistance for a significant deterioration of his mental health, while the judge in the case described it as a “difficult decision” and said a youth rehabilitation order (YRO) would better protect the public than a custodial sentence.
He was sentenced to a YRO with a supervision requirement for three years, a programme requirement for 60 days, an extended activity requirement for 91 days, a residence requirement for six months, and an electronically monitored curfew requirement for four months.
Chris Walker, the families’ legal representative and director of serious injury at Bond Turner, said the decision could not be understood and raised concerns over whether lessons have indeed been learned from the Southport case.
“A number of details regarding this teenager and his background are seriously alarming and we felt it was only right that we commented given the focus of the Southport Inquiry and the numerous agencies that were involved with AR prior to the events of July 2024.
“The Prime Minister himself commented following the Southport attack that the institutional failings ‘leap off the page’ – and it would appear the same can be said here.”
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