STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Swedish prosecutors on Tuesday indicted a man suspected of murdering a woman and planning to kill a senior politician in July with “terrorist crime through murder”, and “preparation of terrorist crime through the preparation of murder”.
The 33-year-old was arrested on site at the time after a woman was stabbed to death in a crowded square in Visby on the Baltic Sea island of Gotland during the annual Swedish political Almedalen Week festival, also known as Politicians’ Week in Visby.
The woman, a prominent professional within Swedish psychiatry, was stabbed near where Centre party leader Annie Loof had been due to hold a news conference.
While not initially identified publicly as an intended victim in the case, Loof was in August appointed a plaintiff’s counsel.
Prosecutor Henrik Olin, after pressing charges, confirmed at a news conference on Tuesday that Loof was the intended victim in the “preparation of terrorist crime through the preparation of murder” charge.
“His view on the suspicion of terrorist crime through murder and preparation of terrorist crime through the preparation of murder, his lawyer has said earlier, is that he is prepared to assume responsibility for these crimes,” Olin said.
The indicted man’s lawyer was not immediately available for comment.
Loof, who stepped down as party leader in September, said on Tuesday on Facebook that being a subject of the ongoing legal process was deeply affecting her and her family.
“It’s stunning and almost unreal to hear about the perpetrator’s motives and preparations,” she said. “I hope this can be a real eye-opener for all of us about what kind of society we want to have.”
Olin said on Tuesday the investigation showed the man had planned to attack other people as well, including journalists and politicians, but the prosecutor was able to show that the 33-year-old had made preparations only to attack Loof.
“He scouted the premises during Almedalen, he gathered her programme during the Almedalen week and he on several occasions visited locations she was due to visit,” Olin said.
He said the accused, who has a history of mental illness, had an aversion to Swedish psychiatry. There was nothing to indicate the accused had any accomplices.
The trial will start on Nov. 8.
(Reporting by Anna Ringstrom; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
