Southport: FBI to help police with inquiry into killer's deleted searches
Investigators found no signs of any allegiance to a single cause, which is why - despite Rudakubana pleading guilty to downloading a terror manual - his case has never been treated as a terrorism investigation.They have had to apply to access Rudakubana' search history on Google and Microsoft, which are based in the US, via a specialist prosecutor in the country.
In a new joint statement, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and Merseyside Police confirmed the FBI were now involved as the inquiry continues.It said: "A specialist liaison CPS prosecutor in the United States has been working with international partners to obtain material which may be relevant."We are thankful to the US Department of Justice and the FBI for their ongoing assistance and the importance which they have placed upon our request."Merseyside Police have previously said that Rudakubana's view of violent footage of the attempted murder of a bishop in Australia - made minutes before he left home on the day of the attack - was the only thing that remained from his online history after he deleted his searches.Officers have contacted Google, which owns browser Chrome, and Microsoft, which owns search engine Bing, to uncover what Rudakubana had been searching in the months before the attack.
Detectives also discovered more than 164,000 documents had been downloaded from the internet and stored on Rudakubana's devices.Jailing the 18-year-old for a minimum of 52 years in January, Mr Justice Goose said the material showed he had "a longstanding preoccupation with violent killing and genocide".At the time, Det Ch Insp Pye said an ongoing process in the US courts to retrieve Rudakubana's online searches "could be years"."Our case has always been - based on the evidence - it's not counter-terrorism. There is nothing in terms of ideology," he said."So I couldn't go down that path to try and get that information any quicker."There is a process of getting it quicker, but because it's in the serious organised crime, major crime category, unfortunately I can't get it as quick as we would like."
Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on BBC Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram, and watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Press and Journal
an hour ago
- Press and Journal
'That's not a knife': Sword-wielding man's Crocodile Dundee threat to neighbour
A man has appeared in court after he quoted from the comedy Crocodile Dundee while threatening someone with a sword. Darren Morrison's neighbour had brandished a kitchen knife at him following an altercation over noise, so he responded by fetching a replica sword from his own home. He then brandished the claymore-style weapon at the woman – itself a replica from 1986's sci-fi film Highlander – and quoted from the Paul Hogan hit, telling her: 'That's not a knife…' Morrison, 51, appeared at Tain Sheriff Court to admit a single charge of threatening behaviour in relation to the incident on July 3 of this year. Fiscal depute Adelle Gray told the court that, at around 9.30pm on that date, Morrison and his wife had been trying to put their grandchildren to bed at an address in Westford, Alness. His neighbour was 'playing her music loud' and when asked to turn it down in a Facebook message, she responded by telling them to 'f*** off'. An altercation between those at the house and the neighbour followed, during which the woman slammed doors while holding a speaker. She then grabbed a purple-handed bread knife and began to wave it, shouting: 'I'll take you all – come on then.' Morrison's wife shouted: 'She has got a knife,' prompting him to go inside his own house and grab a replica sword, which was mounted on the wall. He then returned to the garden and stated, 'That's not a knife…' brandishing the sword in her direction. Solicitor Patrick O'Dea, for Morrison, told Sheriff Mark Lindsay, that his client had been referencing Crocodile Dundee with his comment and had 'not been trying to terrify' the woman in question. Following this revelation, the sheriff questioned whether the scene appeared in the original film or its 1988 sequel, noting 'It's where he is in New York.' The famous scene appears in the first film, not the Australia-based sequel. Mr O'Dea told the court that Morrison – a 'genuine first offender' – was simply 'trying to make a ridiculous situation more ridiculous'. He said: 'He bitterly regrets reacting to the complainer's bread knife – he now reflects on it as ridiculous.' Mr O'Dea explained to the court that the 'huge weapon' wielded by his client was a replica of a prop from the 1986 Highlander movie and was not a real sword. Hearing this, Sheriff Lindsay ordered the forfeiture of the replica sword and deferred sentence on Morrison for three months to allow him to demonstrate good behaviour.
Daily Mirror
3 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
French online star found dead after '10 days of torture and sleep depravation'
French social media star Jean Pormanove was found dead by police on Monday after '10 days of torture, sleep deprivation and ingestion of toxic products' A social media star known for his wild online antics died tragically following a livestream and '10 days of torture, sleep deprivation and ingestion of toxic products'. Raphael Graven, who was also known as Jean Pormanove, was found dead by police on Monday. The Frenchman died on Sunday night at his home in Contes, Alpes-Maritimes, France. An investigation into his death is now underway, according to the Nice prosecutor's office. An autopsy is due to be performed on the streamer' s body. Clara Chappaz, France's Minister Delegate for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Digital Affairs, said Pormanove was 'humiliated and mistreated for months live on the Kick platform'. She said a judicial investigation is underway. Ms Chappaz added: 'The responsibility of online platforms for the dissemination of illegal content is not an option: it is the law. This type of failure can lead to the worst and has no place in France, in Europe, or elsewhere.' According to a translation, Kick told AFP that it was "deeply saddened by the loss of Jean Pormanove". It added: "We are urgently reviewing the circumstances and collaborating with the relevant stakeholders... Kick's community rules are intended to protect creators, and we are committed to enforcing them across our platform." Pormanove was known for subjecting himself to extreme challenges and had more than 500,000 social media followers. BFMTV reported several internet users noticed a sudden end to the livestream on Kick. He reportedly endured '10 days and nights of torture' which included sleep deprivation, extreme physical violence and the 'ingestion of toxic products'. Another streamer who was present was seen cutting the stream after trying to wake up Pormanove. Pormanove caused controversy with his live antics with fellow content creators Naruto and Safine in particular. He was seen in clips having food pushed into his mouth while he was restrained, being tackled in a room that appeared to be a basement and having objects thrown at him. Naruto and Safine were taken into custody in January this year on suspicion of violence against vulnerable people. Reports say Pormanove and another disabled influencer had been humiliated live. This was denied by both streamers. In a tribute to Pormanove, Naruto said on Instagram he had always 'dreaded the day I'd have to write these words'. They said: 'Sadly, last night, JP (Raphael Graven) left us. My brother, my sidekick, my partner, six years side by side, never letting go. I love you, my brother, and we will miss you terribly. 'I ask you all to respect his memory and not share the video of his last breath in his sleep. For his family and for us, his second family. Rest in peace, my brother, Owen.' Naruto's lawyer told AFP on Tuesday his client bore "no responsibility" for Pormanove's death.
Evening Standard
4 hours ago
- Evening Standard
PFA Player of the Year: Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah and Arsenal's Mariona Caldentey honoured
On Tuesday night, he explained his absence and fired a shot at his current employers about his discontentment in a statement on Instagram, where he claimed that 'promises' had been 'broken' and that his 'relationship' with the club 'could not continue'.
