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CORRUPTION

First arrest made in Gothenburg bribe probe

A contractor with a municipal housing company became the first suspect arrested in connection with a bribery scandal that rocked Gothenburg earlier this year, a prosecutor with Sweden's National Anti-Corruption Unit (Riksenheten mot korruption) announced on Tuesday.

More arrests are expected, regional prosecutor Nils-Erik Schultz told news agency TT.

The suspects face charges of attempted aggravated fraud and aggravated fraud. The next arrest is expected to involve a person at a municipal housing company suspected of aggravated corruption and gross breach of trust.

The Gothenburg bribery scandal has grown since it was first uncovered in the spring. The preliminary investigations are now pursuing suspects associated with the management of the city’s sports and recreation department, municipal housing firm Familjebostäder, and three other municipal housing companies and firms.

Municipal housing company Poseidon announced last week that they had notified police about a staff member suspected of embezzlement. According to a report in the Göteborgs-Posten (GP) newspaper, the individuals currently of interest had not previously surfaced in its reporting.

Schultz said that if all goes as planned, it may be possible to hold remand hearings on Friday. He believes that the bribery scandal may result in as many as 15 to 20 people being called in for questioning.

“It is extremely important that all stones are turned so that possible irregularities can be brought to light,” city director Åke Jacobsson commented in a press release about the latest turns in the bribery scandal.

“Justice must take its course and within the city of Gothenborg, we welcome the continuing investigations. We will support the police and the prosecution in every way to facilitate their further investigations.”

An independent report commissioned by the municipality of Gothenburg to review the accounts of the city’s sports and clubs division amid allegations of bribery, has complained that the material is incomplete in a report submitted on Monday.

Sweden’s anti-corruption unit opened an investigation into allegations of aggravated bribery against several officials in Gothenburg after revelations concerning a construction magnate were broadcast on Sveriges Television (SVT) in late April. The investigation involved allegations against Familjebostäder as well as the city’s sports and recreation department.

Furthermore, an independent report conducted in early May by auditing firm Ernst & Young, which was commissioned by the city to review the accounts of the its sports and recreation department, noted that the material was incomplete.

While it found no direct evidence of bribery, the accounting firm said that important details over tenders and how contractors secured contracts were missing.

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POLITICS

Red-green coalition takes power in Gothenburg

The Social Democrats, Green Party and Left Party have managed to oust the right-wing Moderates from power in Gothenburg, despite failing to strike a coalition deal with the Centre Party.

Red-green coalition takes power in Gothenburg

The Social Democrats, Left Party and Green Party will now take over the municipality with Jonas Attenius, group leader for the Social Democrats in the city, becoming the new mayor.

“We three parties are ready to together take responsibility for leading Gothenburg,” Attenius wrote to TT. “I am looking forward immensely to leading Gothenburg in the coming years.” 

The three parties will lead a minority government, with 40 out of 81 mandates, meaning it will dependent on mandates from the Centre Party to pass proposals. 

The three parties had hoped to bring the Centre Party into the coalition, but talks fell apart on Monday,  October 24th. 

“We our going into opposition, but our goal is to be an independent, liberal force, which can negotiate both to the left and to the right,” the party’s group leader in Gothenburg, Emmyly Bönfors told the Göteborgs-Posten newspaper. 

The end of talks in Gothenburg leave the Social Democrats leading coalition governments in all three of Sweden’s major cities, with Karin Wanngård appointed Mayor of Stockholm on October 17th. 

The Social Democrats had unbroken control in Malmö since 1994, after they regained power from the Moderates, who controlled the city from 1991-1994, and also from 1985-1988. 

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