This news article details the heartfelt tributes paid by the families of two young girls killed in the Southport stabbing attack last year. The parents shared their memories of their daughters and the devastating impact the tragedy has had on their lives. The article also touches upon the sentencing of the perpetrator, the public outcry surrounding the televised sentencing, and the families' plans for honoring their daughters' memory.
Families of two of the three girls killed in the Southport stabbing attack last year have paid tribute to their daughters. Jenni and David Stancombe, parents of seven-year-old Elsie Dot, and the parents of Bebe King, six, who cannot be named for legal reasons, spoke to The Sunday Times in their first interviews. They recalled the horrifying moments they were told “something awful has happened” on July 29 last year.
The two girls, as well as Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, were killed at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class at the Hart Space in Southport. Just before midday, Jenni got a call from a mother of one of the other children at the class, she told The Sunday Times. “’Something awful has happened. Somebody’s stabbed the kids’”, she said. “I said, ‘What do you mean?’,” Jenni said. “She went, ‘It’s really bad. You need to get here’. “I just ran. I left the whole house open and got in the car.” Bebe’s dad said: “I got down Hart Street and saw straight away there were ambulances all over the place.” The parents paid heartfelt tributes to their daughters and shared how they want them to be remembered. “Everyone says it, don’t they, that they’re one of a kind? But she truly was,' Jenni, 35, said. David, 36, told of Elsie’s energy and adventurous spirit. Bebe’s parents reflected on their daughter’s kindness. Her mother said: “She had this power to connect with people and the relationships she had with all her family members were different but very special. She had this innate kindness. She had a spark. “We have to live for Bebe. And honour her. And find light in the dark.” Axel Rudakabana killed the three young girls and attempted to kill eight other children, who cannot be named for legal reasons, as well as class instructor Leanne Lucas and businessman John Hayes. Rudakabana was given a life sentence with a minimum term of 52 years – one of the highest minimum terms on record. The parents did not name their daughters’ killer throughout the interview, referring to him only as “he” or “the offender”, the Sunday Times said. None of the families were in court for the shock change of plea on the day his trial was set to begin. The parents said how excited the girls were to attend the Taylor Swift-themed dance party, which sold out quickly. The families also told of how the tragedy has affected their other children, including Elsie’s younger sibling. David said: “You know you say to your kids every day, every night, ‘I won’t let anything happen to you’? “How could I say that to (Elsie’s sibling) now? Because this has happened to Elsie. How could I sit there and say, ‘I would never let anything happen to you’?” More than 400 people had been sentenced for offences in connection with riots and disorder following the attacks across the country. Chris Stancombe, Elsie’s uncle, remembered being in David and Jenni’s house when riots broke out. “It was six or seven in the evening,” Chris said. “All we could hear was sirens and helicopters.” Elsie’s uncle and Bebe’s father said the sentencing of their killer, 18-year-old Rudakubana, should not have been broadcast, saying there was too much detail on the girls’ injuries, which was not how they want them to be remembered. “The sentencing shouldn’t have been televised,” Chris said. “We know it has to be heard in court but why did the whole nation need to see it on television?” The families have welcomed plans, announced on January 21 by Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, for a public inquiry into Rudakubana. None of the parents have gone back to work since the stabbings, the Sunday Times reported. David and Jenni have set up a charity, Elsie’s Story, to help children in need. David is to run the London Marathon for charity.
SOUTHPORT STABBING TRIBUTES VICTIM FAMILIES AXEL RUDAKABANA TAYLOR SWIFT DANCE CLASS PUBLIC INQUIRY
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