lam sarah i am sarah campbell in liverpool. the teenager who murdered three girls in southport will be sentenced today. axel rudakubana arrived here at liverpool crown court earlier. he along with the rest of the court is hearing from the families and his victims about the impact his barbaric actions have had on all their lives. i will bring you all the developments from court. i am in london and in other news the met office has issued a red weather warning covering northern ireland and parts of scotland as storm eowyn approaches, warning of gusts of up approaches, warning of gusts of up to 100 miles an hour and a dangerto up to 100 miles an hour and a danger to life. and the patients in wales waiting too long for emergency care. we

meet the family of a man who died from sepsis after waiting 14 died from sepsis after waiting 1a hours for an eminence never came. president trump since 1500 troops to the us mexico border in a move he says the crackdown on illegal immigration. you join me here once again you join me here once again outside liverpool crown court outside liverpool crown court way for the last couple of way for the last couple of hours for sentencing hearing of hours for sentencing hearing of a teenager who killed three a teenager who killed three young girls in the southport young girls in the southport knife attack is continuing. i knife attack is continuing. i will warn you, it has been very will warn you, it has been very distressing listening and distressing listening and hearing the details which have hearing the details which have been read out. the families of been read out. the families of his victims are in court and his victims are in court and they have had to listen to they have had to listen to

these details and they have had these details and they have had to watch to watch cctv from the day back on the 29th ofjuly 2024 when the defendant arrived in southport with a knife he bought from amazon and started to indiscriminately stab the young girls who were at a taylor swift themed dance class. he killed three of them, injured eight of them and injured eight of them and injured two adults who are trying to help them. the details have been distressing. just in the last half an hour we have been hearing victim impact statements from some of those involved. these of course are the first chance these families were the victims of families were the victims of families have had to put forward their thoughts as to what happened on that day. we have just been hearing a statement from the family of alice da silva aguiar and she was the nine—year—old girl and one of the three people that

axel rudakubana killed on that day. the statement from her parents said she was always very kind, she was a beautiful girl, a strong and confidence preteen. we were going to surprise her with a trip to disneyland and that summers day she was so excited to go to the dance workshop. in a matter of minutes our lives were shattered and they were turned upside down. we kept up hope every second of his 14 hour flight but when she lost her fight we lost our lives. it shattered our souls. it feels like we're stuck in a horror movie with moving pictures and moments being relived. it has fear, anxiety, loss and terror all over it and it's playing everywhere. let's listen now to

six—year—old bebe king, elsie dot stancombe who was seven and nine—year—old alice aguiar murdered in southport last summer in a tragedy which led to a wave of and sadness. southport is a small, seaside town. everyone here has a connection to someone who was at the dance class at the beginning of the summer holidays. sarah was hoping her daughter would be there. it filled up very quickly as of course it would do, so we were down on the waiting list. she wasn't there. i guess i will be forever grateful for that but also, absolutely devastated that there are young people who are not here. thatjust doesn't seem fair. axel rudakubana was arrested with the weapon in his hand but refused to admit he carried out the attack. but then this monday, with the trial about to start, he told his lawyers he was changing his plea. as well as the murders, he admitted trying to kill eight other children and two adults, possession of a knife,

manufacturing rising and downloading an al-qaeda training manual, a terror offence. it is clear that this was a young man sustained interest in death and violence. he has shown no signs of remorse. asked as a community and families have psyched themselves up for a trial which will be challenging. so relief, the anger and of course we have now got to sit and wait for the sentencing, and then the real shock, he was known to the services has really hit us as well. there is some anger around that for sure. amid high security, rudakubana was brought to court this morning. finally unmasked, he will hear what his sentence will be.

so the sentencing hearing is continuing inside the crown court. we have reached the stage where we are hearing the victim impact statements. these are the people who are affected or the families of those who were killed. how uk correspondent has been across the feed from the court. really terrible to read those statements. i terrible to read those statements.- terrible to read those statements. ~ ., �* , , statements. i think what's been strikin: statements. i think what's been striking today — statements. i think what's been striking today is _ statements. i think what's been striking today is that _ statements. i think what's been striking today is that some - striking today is that some people have actually read what effect this awful crime has had on them in person so for example we have watched leanne lucas was the woman who organised this dance event, a 36—year—old woman, described the effect that it's had on her. she stood up in court and she read out what she had written down about the effect it had on her. this is one part of the sentencing process. she described how as a 36—year—old

woman her life has completely changed because she is now constantly anxious and nervous and she feels like although she wasn't really responsible for what happened that she can feel she can take responsibility again. she said as a 36—year—old woman i can't walk down the street without holding my breath as i bypass a person and then glanced back to see if they have attempted to stab me. i can't enter a public place without considering how i will get out in the event of emergency. as a 36—year—old woman i cannot give my compassion or accept praise. how can i knowing that i have survived when children died. that gives you an idea of the effect it has had. i think one of the most extraordinary moments this afternoon was one of the girls was there at the dance event also wanted to read

her statement. she is 14 years old now and she was 13 at the time. she had been asked do you want to produce a statement and she said she did. she was asked if she wanted to read it. she said she did. an arrangement was made that she could read it live but from an armchair in another room in the court. so the image of who was projected into the court and she was able to read her statement and describe what it was like to go to that dance event with her sister and then throw this horror to unfold in front of her. she describes the absolute chaos and panic but she also described how now is a 14—year—old girls she struggles to concentrate on lessons, she finds it difficult to get the

events of that day out of her head. it was incredibly poignant to hear that from a 14—year—old girl, describing the effect it has had on her. we read out some of the statements from the family of alice da silva aguiar who was killed in the attack and the statement is now being read on behalf of the member of elsie dot stancombe, also one of those killed. they have stolen our daughter from those killed. they have stolen our daughterfrom us. you will not take away our determination to honour her memory and we will carry her legacy forward no matter how much pain you have caused. incredibly difficult for them at this is their time in court with the defendant they are to really out what an impact he has had on their lives.— out what an impact he has had on their lives. they would have ima . ined on their lives. they would have imagined he — on their lives. they would have imagined he would _ on their lives. they would have imagined he would be - on their lives. they would have imagined he would be in - on their lives. they would have imagined he would be in the i imagined he would be in the room but yet again after the lunch interval he disrupted

court and was taken out of the room. although the sentence the judge passes doesn't get directly affected by the impact statements, it is now regarded as an important part of the process that a judge should hearin process that a judge should hear in person if people want to the effects and impact an event like this has had. i was struck by how one of the parents described how they were a unit of three and also the family cut and that is how they lives had grown since they'd had alice. now she isjust missing. they can't work, they are struggling to work, they feel the cut is even missing her. there was a really poignant idea of what it's like to have this whole left in your life when in this moment of horror somebody had been snatched away. alice da silva

aguiar was not declared dead at the dance studio. she had some chance. she was taken to hospital and they talked a bit about those agonising hours hoping she would survive but of course in the end she didn't. take us through the process of what we have now, do you get the sense we are coming to the end of this sentencing hearing in the next stages the remarks of the judge in the next stages the remarks of thejudge which in the next stages the remarks of the judge which will be on camera. . . camera. once the impact statements _ camera. once the impact statements section - camera. once the impact statements section is - camera. once the impact i statements section is over, camera. once the impact - statements section is over, we have had the evidence and now we're impact statements, there is a drier section, a legal section which is about what the appropriate sentencing should be according to what the laws are. so there will be a section, not a long section about that. they will be the opportunity for axel

rudaku ba na's lawyers opportunity for axel rudakubana's lawyers to say what they think about whether the sentence should be reduced a little. i am not sure they will take that opportunity. at that point the court will rise in the judge will that point the court will rise in thejudge will on that point the court will rise in the judge will on camera passed sentence. we are definitely, the bulk of the hearing is now over. thank you. clearly an _ hearing is now over. thank you. clearly an incredible _ clearly an incredible difficulty in court. the community of 1526 00:12:35,24