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DRUGS

Sword-wielding man shot by Gothenburg police

A man under the influence of drugs and armed with a sword was shot twice in the leg by police on Hisingen in Gothenburg on Tuesday night.

The man attacked people who passed by and who were standing at a bus stop on Sägengatan near Selma Lagerlöfs torg.

“He acted threatening and went after people who were nearby with the sword,” said commissioner Björn Englom to the TT news agency.

“His whole manner of behaving indicated that he was under the influence of narcotics and he’s also a person with whom we’re already familiar.”

The man continued toward Selma Lagerlöfs torg prompting a number of calls to police reporting the incident.

Several police patrols were directed to the area and police first tried to talk to the man.

“That didn’t work and they instead used pepper spray,” said Engblom.

But that didn’t help stop the man, who then started to attack the police at which point two of them fired their drawn weapons.

The man was hit by two shots. It’s unclear if both shots hit one leg, or if he was hit in both legs.

He was taken to Sahlgrenska University Hospital for treatment.

No one else was injured in the confrontation.