Well this is just weird…WTH happened to this guy in 6 years

[Kaleidoscopia]

BBC charity removes promo video featuring Southport murder accused

Axel Rudakubana appeared, aged 11, as Doctor Who character in 2018 advert for BBC Children in Need

Acute mental illness I expect, sadly.

I notice the Mail or the Express this morning making front page news that he was on a BBC clip as though the evil BBC ought to have known what he'd do 6 years later

If it’s not terrorism/ extremism then very likely to be mental illness. I suspect that’s what will come to light

He was only 11 when he appeared in Dr Who. From personal experience I've noticed some illnesses only come to light as a result of going through puberty.
2 of my children were diagnosed with auto immune disease as teens and another with an eating disorder. Another young relative was suddenly diagnosed with bipolar disorder as a teenager.
All children had a happy healthy upbringing in our case.

I'm not saying it's in his genes because I know nothing about him, I'm just pointing out serious illness can suddenly occur and puberty seems to be a trigger IMO.

Obviously, it goes without saying that doesn’t excuse such an horrendous crime.

It could be paranoid schizophrenia - it tends to affect people in their late teens onwards. It affected my friend's brother who was completely OK until he went to university. He was home by the end of the first term, diagnosed with schizophrenia.

I went to school with a girl who was diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic. Nothing became apparent (at least to us, her classmates) until after puberty/late teens.

Puberty can be a trigger for a number of mental health disorders, often it's in the teen years that people are diagnosed with schizophrenia or bipolar, both of which can be accompanied by psychosis.

We really have no way of knowing at the moment what caused him to take the action he took, but it seems unlikely that he's a well rounded, mentally healthy, well-supported boy.

He's a 17 year old boy, his actions and the results were horrific but I strongly believe that when police are investigating his life and the circumstances of what he did and why they will find that all was not well.

According to one newspaper he was recently diagnosed as autistic and had been isolating himself for some time.

The attack was so specific though. It wasn’t just a random thing - he took a cab to the venue. Had he just wanted to stab just anyone because of a breakdown, he presumably could have stabbed his neighbours without needing to travel anywhere. I therefore think there is more to it.

By this are you discounting mental illness?

No, not at all.

I always wonder why when people murder under the excuse of mental illness it's always easy targets, children, women and lone people.

They never seem to think let's go target the local rugby club full of lots of big, strong men.

Spot on 👏

’Excuse’ of mental illness? Do you actually know anything about serious mental illness? I hope you’ve inadvertently used such a flippant term.

Also, what’s your evidence to support what you’re claiming about victims of violence perpetrated by mentally ill people?

For some reason I keep thinking about his sibling. How it must be affecting them, the backlash against their ethnicity and all the crazy racist bullshit on top of the awful nightmare of what this guy did. I can only imagine someone capable of this wasn't exactly a normal brother to live with. I wonder what the family tolerated in private before now.

You do know that mental illness can strike anyone don't you?

There but by the grace of god goes you and, hopefully for your sake, your family.

Who? Autistic people do kill themselves.

@Reedroo

@Reedroo

Yes, I do know quite a lot about mental illness through my own personal issues which required secondary care for 3 years.
Recovering well now due to seeking the help that is available.

I also know there is treatment available should an individual wish to get help. Yes, maybe not NHS services that require a waiting list through the GP that will get help straight away, but there is emergency mental health help available to people and it's very well signposted these days as the topic of mental health is such a hot one these days and has been for quite a while now.

And maybe not always like I stated in my post, but just looking at the news today is grim reading.

I wonder what has happened in the last six years, to change him from being chosen to feature in a prominent advert (for children), to stabbing children.

@Poppinjay

I do, yes.

I can tell you with a devastating certainty that they kill themselves all the time.

They do.

Frequently.

I suspect a combination of many factors including puberty alongside unmanaged or undiagnosed mental disorders, social isolation, involvement with some dark corners of the internet. I have also seen reports of autism which in combination with other factors may predispose to obsessive behaviour.

I would be amazed if his plan wasn't discussed somewhere online. You'd think with all the tech we have at our disposal these days we would be using it more to identify dangerous individuals and intervene before people are killed. The Plymouth killer also springs to mind.