London – A British teenager pleaded guilty on Monday to the murders of three girls and the attempted murders of 10 others in what prosecutors said was “meticulously planned”. a stab at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class last summer in England. Axel RudakubanaThe 18-year-old made the surprise plea as jury selection was expected to begin at the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court.

The July 29 stabbings shocked the UK and led to a week of widespread unrest In England and Northern Ireland, after the suspect was falsely identified as an asylum seeker who had recently arrived in Britain by boat, he was actually born in Wales.

The rampage happened on the first day of summer vacation, when the little girls were at Hart Space, tucked behind a row of houses, to learn yoga and dance to Taylor Swift songs. when Rudakubana, armed with a knife, burst in and began stabbing the girls and their teacher in the seaside town of Southport in north-west England.

“This was an unspeakable attack that left a lasting mark on our community and nation for its savagery and senselessness,” said Deputy Crown Attorney Ursula Doyle. to take advantage of a children's dance workshop and make friendship bracelets, became a scene of the darkest horror as Axel Rudakubana carried out his carefully planned rampage.”

Prosecutors have not said what they believe led Rudakubana, who was days shy of his 18th birthday, to commit the atrocities, but Doyle said it was clear he had a “morbid and persistent interest in death and violence.”

Rudakubana has consistently refused to speak in court and did so once again when asked to identify himself at the start of the trial, but he broke his silence when the 16-count indictment was read to him and he was asked to plead “guilty” to each charge.

He was found guilty of three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder, and additional charges of possession of the poison ricin and possession of an al-Qaeda handbook.

Rudakubana faces life in prison on Thursday, Judge Julian Goose said.

Defense attorney Stanley Reise said he will present the judge with information about Rudakubana's mental health that may be relevant to his sentence.

The surviving victims and family members of those killed were absent from court as they were expected to appear Tuesday for opening statements.

Sag asked the prosecutor to apologize on his behalf that they were not present to hear Rudakubana's plea.

He was found guilty of murdering 9-year-old Alice DaSilva Aguiar, 7-year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe and 6-year-old Baby King.

Eight other girls, ages 7 to 13, were injured, as were instructors Leanne Lucas and Jonathan Hayes, who worked at a neighboring business and intervened. Fifteen other girls under the age of 5 were in the classroom, but none of the girls survived one is not named.

King Charles III and Taylor Swift met separately with some of the families of the victims after the attack.

Police said the stabbings were not classified as acts of terrorism because a motive was not known.

A few months after his arrest at the scene of the crime, Rudakubana was additionally charged with possession of a biological poison, ricin production, and possession of information that would be useful to a person committing or preparing to commit a terrorist act on his computer document.

Police said they found the evidence during a search of his family's home in a neighboring village.

The day after the killings, and shortly after a peaceful vigil for the victims, a violent mob attacked a mosque near the crime scene and pelted police with bricks and bottles and torched police vehicles.

The unrest then spread to dozens of other cities over the next week as groups of men mobilized by far-right activists on social media clashed with police in violent demonstrations and attacked hotels housing migrants.

More than 1,200 people were arrested for rioting and hundreds were jailed for up to nine years.