Teen charged in U.K. dance class stabbings pleads not guilty to murder
CTV
A teen charged with killing three girls and wounding 10 other people in a stabbing rampage at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in England this summer remained silent in court Wednesday as not guilty pleas were entered on his behalf.
A teen charged with killing three girls and wounding 10 other people in a stabbing rampage at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in England this summer remained silent in court Wednesday as not guilty pleas were entered on his behalf.
Axel Rudakubana, 18, who has refused to speak in each court appearance, was read the charges of three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and additional charges related to possessing the poison ricin and for having an al Qaeda manual.
Justice Julian Goose ordered a clerk to enter the pleas in Liverpool Crown Court as Rudakubana stayed mum during a video appearance from a London prison where he is held.
His trial is scheduled for Jan. 20.
It was the first time in a court appearance that the teen did not pull his sweatshirt collar over his nose to obscure his face.
He appeared to smile as an officer confirmed that the court proceeding could be heard at the prison. The judge noted that Rudakubana was not responding. He swayed from side to side as the charges were read and bent forward at one point.
Rudakubana was charged in August with murdering three girls -- Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Bebe King, 6 -- and stabbing 10 other people on July 29 in the seaside town of Southport in northern England.
