London
CNN
—
The teenager charged with the murder of three young girls in a July stabbing attack at a dance class in northwest England will face a terrorism charge, British prosecutors announced Tuesday.
The suspect Axel Rudakubana, who was 17 at the time of the attack but is now 18, will be charged with the production of the biological toxin ricin, and possession of information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing to commit an act of terrorism, the United Kingdom’s Crown Prosecution Service said in a statement.
The new charges he faces in relation to the attack in the town of Southport, England, are in addition to three charges of murder, 10 charges of attempted murder and one charge of possession of a knife.
Three young girls – Bebe King, 6, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and 9-year-old Alice da Silva Aguiar – were stabbed to death while attending a Taylor Swift-themed class in Southport in July, in one of the worst assaults against children in the country in decades. Eight other children also suffered stab wounds in the attack.
CNN’s Helen Regan and Maija Ehlinger contributed to this report.
This is a developing story and will be updated.