A teenager from Cwmbran, Torfaen, has been sentenced to 14 months in a young offender’s institute after pleading guilty to possessing an al-Qaeda training manual. McKenzie Morgan, 18, was inspired by the Southport killer Axel Rudakubana and planned a copycat attack on a children’s dance school, as well as targeting the first Oasis reunion concert in Cardiff.
Morgan was initially arrested on 2 June 2025 after the police were contacted by an individual who was concerned about his activities on Snapchat. Authorities discovered that Morgan had researched violent attacks, discussed targeting the Oasis concert, and attempted to purchase knives. While the conviction related solely to the possession of terrorist material, and not to planning or attempting any attack, the court heard that Morgan had a “note” titled “places to attack” which included images and directions to a local dance school near his home.
The Crown Prosecution Service stated that Morgan’s actions showed he was “infatuated and inspired by Rudakubana,” who was sentenced to a minimum of 52 years in prison for the murder of three young girls and ten counts of attempted murder during a terrorist attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport in 2024.
Judge Sarah Whitehouse told the court that there was no clear evidence of Morgan holding any political, religious, or racial ideology, and his motivation appeared to be to “emulate the Southport terrorist attacker.” She described him as a danger to himself and “vulnerable to being bullied, groomed and radicalised.”
Det Supt Andrew Williams of Counter Terrorism Policing Wales said that Morgan was “not born bad” but was vulnerable to the “malign influences that prey on our young people in today’s online world.” He added that the case highlights the need for society to address the issue of young people being exposed to dangerous and influential content online.
The CPS said that Morgan’s conviction demonstrated their determination to prosecute those who possess terrorist material without reasonable excuse, even if there is no evidence of a real plot to carry out an attack. The case underscores the growing threat of “copycat” lone extremists, who are often driven by a desire for infamy rather than a specific ideological motive.