Image source, Bedfordshire Police

We are now wrapping up our live coverage from the sentencing hearing of Nicholas Prosper at Luton Crown Court.

He was jailed for life with a minimum term of 49 years for the murders of his mum, Juliana Falcon, and teenage siblings Kyle and Giselle Prosper, at the tower block flat in Marsh Farm in Luton, where they all lived.

Having murdered his relatives on Friday, 13 September last year, the 19-year-old killer wanted to become the deadliest school shooter the UK had ever seen by opening fire at his old primary school in the Bedfordshire town.

However, his plan was disrupted when neighbours raised the alarm after hearing a struggle from inside the family flat.

As well as reading all our posts below, you can read our background piece about how Prosper was inspired to become a mass murderer here, as well as our report on today's sentencing.

If you have been affected by any of the distressing content coming from court today, support is available via BBC Action Line.

Brian Farmer
Luton Crown Court

Image source, Julia Quenzler

When I watched young Nicholas Prosper sitting in the dock with his head in his hands and his fingers in his ears, I thought of Kyle Clifford.

Journalists might expect to report on one triple murder in their career – but I’ve covered two such court cases in the space of a month.

What happened in Bushey in July 2024, when 26-year-old Clifford slaughtered Carol Hunt and her daughters Hannah and Louise, was beyond belief.

That another young man, and an even younger one, should go on to slaughter his mother, brother and sister, in Luton in September is, well, I can’t think of a big enough word.

Two ordinary days in two ordinary English towns some 20 miles apart.

Six horrific murders (with even more horrific murders planned in Luton).

Six lives, including the lives of two children, lost - and many more, such as remaining family members, ruined or changed forever.

Image source, Brian Farmer/BBC

Brian Farmer
Luton Crown Court

A killer murdering multiple victims often leads to judges concluding that a life sentence must mean life in jail.

Judges must impose a mandatory life sentence for murder, but they face two choices.

They can decide the case is so serious that it warrants a whole life order, or they can choose to fix a minimum prison term before the offender can be considered for parole.

Recent high-profile cases where murderers have been given whole life orders include that of crossbow killer Kyle Clifford and Metropolitan Police officer Wayne Couzens.

Often, they decide against the ultimate penalty of an entire lifetime behind bars.

The case of Ian Huntley is one such example where a judge has opted for a lengthy spell behind bars, but not necessarily a lifetime, although the parole board may never deem them fit for release.

Huntley, who murdered two 10-year-old girls in Soham, near Cambridge, in 2002, was given life with a minimum of 40 years.

More recently, Southport killer Axel Rudakubana was told he would spend the next 52 years behind bars before he was considered for parole after murdering three primary-school age girls at a summer holiday dance class.

Today, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb became the latest judge to conclude that life should not mean life.

She concluded the sentencing guidelines meant Nicholas Prosper's case was not one that "cleanly clears the hurdle of enhanced exceptionality".

The judge pointed to factors including Prosper's age, his health and his guilty pleas, before deciding to set a minimum 49-year term.

She also noted Prosper was "highly dangerous" and may never be released.

Image source, PA Media

The sentencing hearing was supposed to resume at 10:30 this morning, but Prosper was refusing to come back into court, which delayed proceedings by an hour and a half.

Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb said she would not pass sentence until the triple murderer, who was in court yesterday, was brought into the dock in front of her.

Here is what she said in full:

"I was told at 08:45 this morning that you were refusing to attend court.

"I ordered that you had to be brought.

"You do not want to be here, but it is not your choice.

"You have to face the consequences of your actions; to hear the court’s sentence passed in public, and it is important for those who loved your victims to see you sentenced."

Shan Saunders, a senior prosecutor with the Crown Prosecution Service, says the murderer's "chilling" crimes have distressed the community.

"Nicholas Prosper’s cold and calculated killing of his mother, brother and sister and the revelation that he planned to shoot a class of schoolchildren and their teachers has left his family devastated and an entire community in shock," she says.

Ms Saunders said detectives uncovered Prosper's extensive planning and a "disturbing interest" in mass murder.

"It is beyond comprehension that a young man would want to kill those closest to him and target innocent young children," she continued.

"His clear lack of empathy and remorse is highly unusual and deeply concerning.

"We recognise the deep distress and anxiety felt by those in the local community upon learning the detail of these chilling crimes.

"Now that the criminal proceedings are concluded we hope that the loved ones of Juliana, Giselle and Kyle can begin to rebuild their lives."

As we mentioned just now, those who knew Nicholas Prosper faced a struggle in getting him to engage with mental health services.

Perhaps none more so than his mother, Juliana Falcon, who noticed he had become withdrawn at home, as well as at school.

She encouraged him to attend college and study for A-levels, but this made Prosper "angry".

The judge said Juliana was "hard-working", adding: "She cared for her children and tried to persuade you to get help when [you were] struggling at school.

"She was an innocent victim of an ungrateful, unfeeling son whose only wish was to be famous through destroying the lives of young children."

We have also heard about Prosper refusing to engage with mental health services over a potential Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) diagnosis.

This had been recommended by both his parents and teachers, and a referral was made to the local Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services team, but nothing came of it.

"Although autism was suspected and you seemed to be overwhelmed by social interaction and unco-operative in lessons, you resisted assessment or intervention," the judge said.

However, after his guilty pleas a consultant forensic psychiatrist examined Prosper in custody and their pre-sentence report, read in court on Tuesday, concluded the 19-year-old had mild ASD traits, including having "persistent deficits" in social communication and interaction.

He also found the killer had an "extreme lack" of empathy for others.

The judge continued: "These explain almost all the abnormal aspects of the way you related to people and obsessed about things you were interested in such as school shootings and serial killers.

"The internet facilitated this through the free availability of imagery and commentary."

She concluded there was an indirect connection between Prosper's ASD and his offending, but "it is important to note that your ASD does not correlate to an increased risk of violence".

Image source, PA Media

In sentencing Prosper, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb opted against imposing a whole life order, which would have meant no chance of release on parole.

These orders are rare and often described by judges up and down the country as "a sentence of last resort".

The judge said Prosper's age, guilty pleas and the fact he did not continue his violence after leaving the flat swayed her against a whole life tariff.

She instead fixed a minimum term of 49 years, meaning the triple murderer will not be eligible for parole until at least 2074 when he is in his late 60s.

His release would then have to be approved by the Parole Board.

In coming to her decision, the judge said precedent law offered specific guidance when it came to considering whole life orders for those aged 18-20.

She said the offences must be "exceptionally high, even by the standard of offences which would normally result in a whole life order".

"Despite the gravity of your crimes, it is the explicit joint submission of counsel that a lengthy finite term will be a sufficiently severe penalty," the judge said earlier.

"This is not such an exceptionally serious case of the utmost gravity where the sentence of last resort must be imposed on an offender who was 18 at the time and is 19 today."

It has only been legal in England and Wales for people aged between 18 and 20 to receive these orders since 2022.

Image source, Jacob King/PA

Luton Crown Court heard how Nicholas Prosper became fixated with school shootings, and while he interacted with others in chatrooms online, he stopped engaging with the real world and his own education.

The Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: "What we have seen again in this case again is senseless killings fuelled purely by a disturbing fixation with violence and obsessive brutality.

"This terrible case has exposed deep and longstanding weaknesses in private firearms sales, and we are urgently looking at how we can tighten these controls.

"But it also shows an urgent need to look at the very disturbing way some young people are becoming fixated with extreme violent material online and the real dangers to our communities as a result.

"From tech companies to law enforcement to schools, and right across society, stronger recognition of the nature of this threat is needed, and stronger action to prevent this kind of terrible violence.

"This government will not shy away from taking the actions that are needed to keep communities safe."

Image source, Google

We have just been sent a statement from Cardinal Newman Catholic School, external in Luton, where both Nicholas and Kyle Prosper had their secondary education.

A school spokesman begins by stating Juliana, Kyle and Giselle are "foremost in our thoughts".

They say Kyle, who was 16 years old, was a "much-loved" pupil who was "known for his kindness and for simply being a brilliant friend".

"It is, therefore, no surprise to hear that his last acts were focused on helping others and may have helped stop a tragedy of even greater proportions," they add.

"His bravery and courage are testament to the amazing young man Kyle was, and he will always be in our thoughts and prayers."

The statement continues by saying the details that emerged in court were "difficult to hear and even harder to comprehend".

It pays testament to the "tremendous support" shared within the school community.

"While we believe we exhausted the avenues open to us to support this family, after such a tragedy we would not be human if we did not reflect on whether there was anything we collectively could have done differently," the spokesman adds.

"We would welcome being part of any review process that may take place in the future."

Image source, Brian Farmer/BBC

Speaking outside court, Det Supt Rob Hall read a statement on behalf of Ray Prosper.

He is the former husband of Juliana Falcon, and dad to Giselle, Kyle and the killer, Nicholas Prosper.

The statement read: "We are devastated by the loss of our loved ones, and are horrified to hear what Nicholas had planned.

"He had completely isolated himself from us over the past year, and we had no knowledge of his intentions.

"We now see the deaths of Juliana, my son Kyle and daughter Giselle, had much more meaning and importance.

"Their deaths and the fast response of Bedfordshire Police stopped any other family in the community going through the pain we have suffered."

We also heard more about Prosper's spiralling disengagement from the education system in the build-up to the murders.

After taking his GCSE exams, Prosper was "made" by his mum to go to sixth form college in September 2022.

This was something that made him "angry" at his mother, the judge said in her remarks.

He failed to work towards getting his A-levels and was subsequently asked to leave the college in March 2023.

"From then, you existed in an online world choosing little real-life contact with others apart from attending a gym and working part-time stacking supermarket shelves for a few months," Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb said.

The judge added he spent most of his time planning a school shooting "on a scale that you hoped would make you globally notorious".

As the judge passed her sentence, we gained further insight into what Nicholas Prosper did in the hours before he murdered his family, as well what happened in the immediate aftermath.

• Between 00:00 and 04:00 - Researches necrophilia, the Sarah Everard murder case and a range of mass shootings
• 04:11 - Watches what the judge called "extreme animated pornography" for 30 minutes
• 04:42 - Looks at school massacres online, including the Columbine attack in the US in 1999
• 05:00 - Attacks his mum, brother and sister inside their eighth-floor flat, murdering them after a struggle
• 05:29 - A neighbour calls the police
• 05:33 - Prosper is captured on CCTV leaving his block of flats and is seen wearing a hoodie by his neighbour
• 05:50 - Armed police arrive at the property
• 06:08 - Officers force entry and find a "scene of horror" inside
• 06:22 - Prosper posts a pre-recorded video to Facebook, wearing his "shooting uniform" and reading a script about The Walking Dead video game
• 07:55 - Having hidden for almost two and a half hours, Prosper breaks cover and gestures to a police car passing by on Bramingham Road. He is arrested after officers find a knife in his pocket

After his arrest on Friday, 13 September, Nicholas Prosper was taken into custody by Bedfordshire Police.

Footage from the interview room shows the killer calmly and repeatedly answering "no comment" during an hour of questioning by detectives.

Image source, Kimberley Piper/BBC

The Labour leader of Luton Council said counsellors will be made available to pupils, family and staff members at the primary school where Nicholas Prosper planned to kill 30 pupils.

Hazel Simmons described the details that came out in Prosper's sentencing as "deeply distressing, shocking and upsetting".

"We are supporting St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School... as well as standing up wider support in the community for anyone that is distressed by the revelations.

"As troubling and concerning as these revelations are, it is important to remember that this individual was not able to cause any harm to the school and there are robust systems in place to keep children safe at school at all times.

"Security at Luton schools is constantly reviewed and monitored and in the last couple of weeks we have asked schools to review their lockdown procedures and school site security; and offered to support any school that feels they would like to carry out additional site security surveys."

Image source, Laura Foster/BBC

Bedfordshire's Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) says he has written to the home secretary to request an "urgent review" of legislation relating to firearms sales and exchange in light of the Nichola's Prosper murders.

Labour's John Tizard, who was elected PCC last May, wants Yvette Cooper to look at the law and "make us all safer".

Tizard says his thoughts are with the victims following the "horrific" killings and thanks all those involved "in the response and investigation to bring the person [Proper] to justice".

He adds he is "relieved" Prosper was not able to carry out his chilling plans to target a school.

Image source, Contributed

A senior Bedfordshire Police officer has been paying tribute to Nichola's Prosper's victims and described the Luton killer has "truly evil".

Det Ch Insp Sam Khanna said: "Our thoughts today are first and foremost with Juliana, Kyle and Giselle and all who knew and loved them.

"They should be who we remember, their names who we say, rather than the person who carried out these despicable murders and who intended to carry out an unimaginable level of harm to innocent school children.

"In my entire policing career, which has included many years spent investigating murders, I have never encountered anyone capable of such horrific acts whilst showing no remorse.

"I have been utterly shocked and appalled by the actions and plans of the offender in this case and am pleased that this truly evil individual will now be serving a significant proportion of his life behind bars."

The officer also paid tribute to all of his colleagues involved in bringing Prosper to justice.

BBC Sounds

Sentencing has revealed that Nicholas Prosper's plan would have seen him kill 34 people in total:

• his family
• a class of four and five-year-old children at his old primary school
• two teachers
• and then, finally, himself

He had hoped to kill his family while they slept but his mother woke up and it seems she confronted her son.

Following a noisy struggle, Prosper's neighbours in the tower block alerted the police, meaning the killer had to leave his home hours ahead of his schedule and schools opening for the day.

After the killing Prosper wrote a note which said: "I was right in predicting no-one would've called the police had I killed them in their sleep."

Welcoming the life sentence with a minimum term of 49 years in jail, Bedfordshire's Assistant Chief Constable John Murphy adds: “I know this does not take away from the sheer horror of the incident and his sickening plans to target school children.

"I do not underestimate the impact on the staff, parents and carers of pupils at schools across the country, but particularly those associated with St Joseph’s School.

“We have worked closely with the local authority to provide support to schools across Luton and we would urge all staff and parents to make use of the support that Luton Borough Council has put in place.

“We will have community officers out and about around schools in the area in coming days, please do talk to them about any concerns you may have.”