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RAPE

Ex-police chief remanded in sex ring probe

A former police chief suspected of rape in an expanding sex ring investigation was remanded in custody on Thursday, despite his claims of innocence. A number of other well-known men are also said to be under investigation.

Published: 28 January 2010 15:57 CET
Ex-police chief remanded in sex ring probe
Göran Lindberg (left) in court on Thursday with his lawyer Karl Harling.

Göran Lindberg, a respected law enforcement official who recently retired after a career spanning more than 20 years, came to his hearing at the Södertörn District Court without covering his face.

He appeared calm during the proceedings as the prosecutor requested that Lindberg be remanded on suspicion of raping a woman in the Stockholm suburb of Bandhagen on January 8th of last year, and on suspicions of having attempted to rape and plotted to rape children in Solna, Stockholm and Falun in the first month of 2010.

The prosecutor also asked the court to impose extra restrictions on those involved in the case, including a gag order.

Lindberg denied he had committed any crime and through his lawyer protested the remand order and restrictions.

“My client is very dissatisfied and it’s terribly difficult to be remanded during these proceedings facing such serious charges,” Lindberg’s lawyer Karl Harling told TT.

The investigation into the ex-police chief’s offences is expected to grow to include more men suspected of using young women for sexual purposes.

Lindberg’s name came up unexpectedly in connection with the investigation of a suspicious death in the suburb of Bredäng, south of Stockholm.

In July of last year, a 60-year-old man mysteriously fell to his death from a balcony and police launched a preliminary investigation into the suspected murder.

According to the Expressen newspaper, the man was a multi-millionaire suspected of having arranged meetings for men with prostitutes.

The 60-year-old man had been lured to the apartment by a 39-year-old man and two women who intended to question the man about why he had sexually exploited the younger of the two women.

During the investigation, police confiscated a computer and a mobile phone which belonged to the deceased 60-year-old.

When investigators examined the contents of the machines and found the names of several men, they realized they had stumbled upon a new sex ring and handed the matter over to the Stockholm County police force.

However, it wasn’t Lindberg’s name that first caused a stir among the investigators, but the names of several other men.

“There were names of several well-positioned and well-known late-middle aged men,” a source told the TT news agency.

While further investigating the new information, suspicions came to light that the ex-police chief was part of a secret sex network.

County police officials then put Lindberg under surveillance, which led to his arrest in Falun in central Sweden on Monday.

He is suspected of having traveled to the city in order to meet an under-aged girl.

Justice Minister Beatrice Ask told TT that she couldn’t believe it was true when she first heard about the suspicions against Lindberg.

“It’s obviously devastating and distressing when people who have been afforded great confidence within the judicial system are suspected of these types of serious crimes,” she said.

“There is also a great deal of shock about this within the police corps. Without the intensive and thorough surveillance work which took place in this case, this never would have been discovered.

“It shows that the police are extremely engaged in working against these types of crimes and that they don’t waver simply because it involves someone who has worked in the justice system, and that’s important,” said Ask.

RAPE

‘Negligent rape’: Has Sweden’s sexual consent law led to change?

One year ago, Sweden introduced a law change that meant sex without explicit consent was considered as rape, including when the victim did not actively say 'no'. The Local spoke to experts to find out the impact this has had on court cases and within Swedish society.

Published: 12 July 2019 16:21 CEST
Updated: 15 July 2019 00:20 CEST
'Negligent rape': Has Sweden's sexual consent law led to change?
Experts told The Local Sweden's sexual consent law has had an impact on court cases and in the way people discuss sex and consent in the media and in general.File photo of a Swedish courtroom: Jessica

The law change meant that participants needed to clearly demonstrate that they wanted to engage in sexual activity in order for it to be considered consensual.

Two new offences of “negligent rape” and “negligent sexual abuse” were created for acts where courts found that consent had not been established, but in which the perpetrator had not intended to commit rape or assault. Previously, a decisive factor for a rape conviction was proof that a perpetrator used force, threats, or taken advantage of someone in a vulnerable situation.

The law faced backlash at the time, and had to be clarified after Sweden's Council on Legislation said it was too unclear. Others criticized it as signalpolitik, meaning a policy implemented only for appearances and unlikely to make a real difference. 

Twelve months on, rights organizations say the law has had a measurable impact on court cases and helped change the national discussion on sexual autonomy – but warned there was still work to be done.

'Sweden needs to do more to convict rapists': Amnesty report
File photo of a police officer: Hanna Franzén/TT

'Negligent rape' sentences

“Earlier this year, we looked at 30 court judgments, and these included cases which definitely would not have been considered to be rape before the change in the law; where no violence or other means of force was used,” Katarina Bergehed, an Amnesty International expert in women's rights, told The Local.

Over the past year, the new law has been decisive in at least seven rape cases which went to court, according to an investigation by Swedish radio programme I lagens namn (In the name of the law).

The programme said that of 60 rape cases, the new law was crucial in seven, including six convictions of negligent rape.

A study from the Siren news agency reached the same conclusion, finding that in 84 cases where prosecutors mentioned “negligent rape”, 45 resulted in a rape conviction while six were sentenced for negligent rape. 

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'Sleeping in the same bed and wearing only underwear does not mean consent'

One of these sentences was confirmed by Sweden's Supreme Court on Sunday, marking the first time the country's highest criminal court made a judgment relating to negligent rape.

The 27-year-old male plaintiff was found guilty of the negligent rape of a woman while staying overnight at her home.

The woman said had agreed he could stay overnight, but made it clear she did not want to have sex. Despite that, the man initiated sexual intercourse. 

Both the perpetrator and the plaintiff said that she was passive throughout the intercourse, and that they did not speak. The plaintiff said she “froze and did not know how to act”, while the perpetrator said he was not sure whether she was awake when he first initiated sexual contact, “but [he] had the impression that she wanted to have sex” and continued because she did not tell him not to. He also said that he stopped the intercourse when he thought she didn't want to continue.

In a statement accompanying its decision, the Supreme Court wrote: “A person who is subjected to sexual acts against their will does not have any responsibility to say no or express their reluctance in any other way. Furthermore, the court notes that the fact that the plaintiff and the perpetrator agreed to sleep in the same bed and that they were dressed in only underwear does not mean that the plaintiff voluntarily participated in the sexual acts.”

The man now faces two years and three months in jail, although this includes sentences for other crimes he was found guilty of. The penalty for the count of negligent rape was eight months’ jail, according to the Supreme Court.

Without the 2018 law, it is likely that the man would have been acquitted, since intent was previously required for a conviction of rape or sexual assault, and the Supreme Court found no evidence of intent.

Sweden's Supreme Court in Stockholm. Photo: Magnus Andersson / TT

'Greater awareness about consent'

The fact that Sweden's law now sets a clear boundary between consensual sex and rape or assault has also helped open up to discussions about sex and consent, the Swedish Association for Sexuality Education (RFSU) told The Local.

“There is increased awareness and a greater openness towards talking about [sexual consent] today,” said RFSU's Maria Bergström, when asked what changes she had observed since the consent law was passed.

“For example, we can see that this has made it easier for people who have previously experienced this to put words on what happened to them, and to then perhaps go further with reporting it or seeking support. The law has finally made it clear that one always has a responsibility to ensure that there is consent.”

“There is a much greater awareness and more conversations today on these questions among young men but also in the adult population — we also see that the question is raised by the media in a different way than before,” she said.

Bergström also mentioned the impact of the #MeToo movement in putting the question of consent and boundaries on the political agenda, as women from a wide range of industries came forward with their experiences of assault and harassment, all calling for tangible change.

READ ALSO:

Sweden in Focus: One year on, what did #MeToo achieve in Sweden?
A march for women's rights organized by #MeToo campaigners in Gothenburg. Photo: Thomas Johansson/TT

'Near impunity for rape'

While the 2018 law is one example of that change, Sweden is a long way from ensuring that all rapists face justice. 

According to the National Council on Crime Prevention (Brå), around 112,000 people were subjected to rape or sexual assault in Sweden in 2018, while only 5,593 such crimes were reported to police. And of those rapes reported to police, only around seven percent went to trial.

“We have near impunity when it comes to rape in this corner of the world that's normally regarded as one of the most gender equal countries, and we simply can’t have that,” said Amnesty International's Katarina Bergehed.

An Amnesty report earlier this year found that questioning was often delayed, and that DNA analyses could take as long as nine months to deliver.

“It’s crucial to deal with rape cases promptly. You need to secure evidence very rapidly otherwise it can disappear, and some evidence risks being deleted on mobile phones. Police are understaffed and resources are often drawn towards other crimes such as gang violence and killings,” said Bergehed. But she added: “The signals we’re getting is that the police are both willing and finally able to resource themselves to deal with rape in an efficient way.”

The Swedish police force announced last month that by next year, 350 investigators would be recruited to deal specifically with cases of rape, sexual violence against children and domestic violence.

Bergehed also pointed to the importance of changing attitudes towards sex and consent across all levels of society.

“Changing a law alone is not sufficient; you need police training, awareness in schools; the whole society needs to change,” she said. “There should of course be justice for rape victims once it happens, but the longer goal is to eradicate rape and sexual violence.”
 

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