Amazon boss admits 'we fell short' after killer bought murder weapon on the site

RUDAKUBANA USED HIS DAD'S DETAILS TO BYPASS FIRM'S AGE VERIFICATION CHECK

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AMAZON has admitted “we fell short” after the Southport killer was able to order his murder weapon online using his dad’s details to bypass security checks.

Axel Rudakubana ordered two 20cm Cerbera kitchen knives two weeks before he carried out his attack at the Taylor Swift-themed dance party.

Rudakubana, who is referred to as AR in the ongoing Southport Inquiry proceedings, murdered Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, Bebe King, six, and Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, and injured 10 other people when he “specifically targeted” the dance event at the Hart Space in Southport on July 29 last year.

The inquiry heard yesterday how the teenager used encrypted software and his dad's details to bypass Amazon's age verification checks.

Amazon’s UK manager John Boumphrey told the inquiry that this was “a fundamental flaw” and accepted the retail giant “fell short”.

Rudakubana regularly browsed Amazon for a worrying array of items including axes and bill hooks which, “in the wrong hands”, could be used as weapons. But on July 13, 2024, he placed the order for the two knives, successfully completing an online age check and arranging a delivery date of the following day.

The inquiry heard Rudakubana ordered a knife at 8.16pm but quickly cancelled the delivery before reordering two more just minutes later, this time using software to mask his IP address. He made the purchase using his own account under the name “AR”, with his shipping name listed as the abbreviated “Ax Rud” and a shipping address of 10 Old School Close.