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The brother of the Southport attacker has requested a public inquiry to establish whether officials could have intervened to stop his brother from causing what he described as “immense pain, anguish and grief”.

In his first statement since the tragic incident, the older brother revealed that his sibling had grown “progressively more isolated” after being removed from school in October 2019.

Investigation Seeks to Uncover Missed Opportunities

In a written statement, he asked the presiding official to examine whether support agencies and other bodies could have done more to prevent the atrocity.

“Dion wholeheartedly supports the investigation’s goal to learn from mistakes that will minimise the chance of such violence occurring in the future,” noted his representatives.

The probe is reviewing how a disturbed youth with a documented fixation with blades and extreme violence – who had been referred multiple times to a counter-radicalisation scheme – was able to commit what was later called “one of the most egregious crimes in the nation’s memory.

Sibling’s Personal History

When the incident occurred, the brother was pursuing a degree at university, where he was also involved in student groups.

According to his testimony, he had “little contact” with his sibling in the years before the mass stabbing, partly due to his education and personal circumstances.

He expressed his desire to support the investigation because his brother’s actions had “caused the most immense pain to many families.

Turning Point: Dismissal

Representatives highlighted that the expulsion from school in 2019 for carrying a knife and assaulting a peer had been a significant factor in the attacker’s withdrawal from friends and family.

On the day of the attack, the older brother was at the family home in Banks, Lancashire.

He offered information to police “as best he could” regarding his sibling’s state in the days leading up to the attack, in which multiple children and two adults were targeted, several fatally.

Character Contrast

The brother is portrayed as “sharply different from” his brother – “a thoughtful young man” of strong integrity who was focused on his university studies.

Much of the attacker’s deterioration occurred at a time when his brother was himself young.

“Dion, like many others, wishes the inquiry will examine whether more could have been done by agencies to assist his sibling or intervene in a way that might have reduced the likelihood of the tragic events,” noted the testimony.

Victims’ Families

Families of the three murdered girls – a seven-year-old, Bebe King, and nine years old – recently spoke about the lasting pain of their tragedy.

The public hearing, taking place in Liverpool, is expected to finish in November, with a comprehensive findings to be submitted to the authorities in the subsequent period.