Father of young girl stabbed in Southport attack tells inquiry 'she is our hero'

The second day of the public inquiry (Wednesday, July 9) heard evidence from families of the children who survived the attack, carried out by Axel Rudakubana at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class at the Hart Space on July 29, 2024.

The father of one of the girls - referred to as C3 to protect her identity - told the hearing at Liverpool Town Hall it was “patently clear that lessons need to be learned from what happened, and processes need to be changed”.

Sitting with the girl’s mother in the witness box, he said: “Our nine-year-old daughter was stabbed three times in the back by a coward she didn’t even see. Although she didn’t know what was happening — she knew she had to run. ”

He said they had since seen CCTV footage of her running from the building on Hart Street, looking “scared, confused and pained” and hiding behind a parked car, before jumping to “relative safety” through an open car door.

He added: “We remain eternally grateful that we were lucky that day, and that the skill of the paramedics, surgeons and medical staff meant we got our little girl back.”

He said she remained “the positive, caring, funny, enthusiastic, courageous girl she always was”, adding: "We couldn't be prouder of her. She is our hero."

Counsel to the inquiry Nicholas Moss KC said commemorative and impact evidence from victims and families was the “first and important part” of the first phase of the public inquiry. Four statements are due to be heard on Wednesday.

The inquiry was opened on Tuesday by chairman Sir Adrian Fulford, who described the acts of Rudakubana as “one of the most egregious crimes in our country’s history” and said he “posed a very serious and significant risk of violent harm, with a particular and known predilection for knife crime”.

Axel Rudakubana - who was seventeen when he carried out the attack - was given a life sentence with a minimum term of 52 years in January for murdering Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven.

He also attempted to murder eight other children, who cannot be named for legal reasons, as well as class instructor Leanne Lucas and businessman John Hayes.

The 18-year-old pleaded guilty to possession of a knife, production of a biological toxin, ricin, and possession of information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing to commit an act of terrorism - in the form of an Al Qaeda manual.

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Following Rudakubana’s guilty plea, it was revealed that he was referred to the government anti-extremism scheme Prevent three times before the murders and excluded from Formby Range High School amid concerns over his fixation with violence.

He also attempted to murder eight other children, who cannot be named for legal reasons, as well as instructor Leanne Lucas and businessman John Hayes.

A key question for the inquiry is whether the attack could or should have been prevented, given what was known about the killer.