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HALMSTAD

Arrest in probe of Swedish ‘sex-chamber’

A 47-year-old man was taken into custody by Swedish police on Monday after a witness linking him to the discovery of sexual torture chamber in an abandoned farmhouse in western Sweden a few weeks ago.

Arrest in probe of Swedish 'sex-chamber'

The discovery, made by two amateur photographers who stumbled upon the dungeon-like room while exploring the property, baffled police until the 30-year-old woman contacted them, claiming to have been held in the chamber against her will “for a longer period of time” a few years ago.

The police declined to provide details about her story, they revealed she is from western Sweden and that she had made contact with the man on an internet chat room.

Police also suspect the witness is not the only woman who was lured to the suspects underground lair.

The secret sex-chamber, accessed through a hatch in the kitchen of the abandoned cabin, consisted of a darkened room with a bed, an elaborate set of harnesses, handcuffs, lubricant, and an assortment of sex toys.

“What is important now is that more potential witnesses come forward. More women, or indeed men, held there against their will,” Lars Hamrén, head of the serious crimes unit in Halmstad, said to the TT news agency.

During a press conference on Tuesday, police explained that the findings in the chamber they have led them to conclude that the room was set up a number of years ago.

After speaking with several people living in the area, the decision was made to launch a preliminary investigation into suspected kidnapping.

“It is very likely that the room has been used for sexual activities and that people have been held there against their will. Anywhere from nothing to something really quite serious, “ Hamrén said.

According to tabloid Aftonbladet, the 47-year-old denies having equipped the torture-chamber or held anyone against their will, but admitted he had been on the premises.

He is previously known to the police and reportedly came quietly when police apprehended him at his home Monday evening. He is held by the police on suspicion of kidnapping.

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#MySweden: ‘Cycle paths lead you wherever you want to go’

The Local's readers take over our Instagram account to introduce each other to towns and neighbourhoods across Sweden. Today, Marta Nowosińska from Poland talks about life in Halmstad.

#MySweden: 'Cycle paths lead you wherever you want to go'
Marta Nowosińska. Photo: Private.

How old are you and what do you normally spend your days doing? 

I’m 24. I spend my days working, cycling, discovering the city and meeting up with new people. I work as a personal care assistant and bingovärdinna (bingo hostess) in the one and only bingo hall in the city. My goal was to find a job where I can use my Swedish and have contact with native speakers to develop my language skills.

And it has happened, so I’m surrounded by Swedes every day and every moment I learn some new words that I can I add to the list of Swedish words I have learned during my stay in Halmstad.

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 

Ladies and gentlemen, now it’s time to present the Swedish dish of the day. I had this honor to be @chefsvensson’s guest today and taste some local delicacies. In the picture you can see: Slow-baked salmon with kale and rootfruits, served with a roe sauce. . . ??Lågtemperead laxfilé på grönkålsbädd med rotfrukter och romsås. . . . One of the ingredients was grönkål(kale), very popular in Sweden and especially in the region of Halland where you can find “halländsk grönkål” or “långkål” as one of dishes on the Swedish “julbord” during Christmas. It’s served with Swedish Christmas ham or sausages then. Today I could taste it with the salmon and that was…. absolutely amazing ????? I don’t have the recipe but I think you can contact the author of the dish. He has a great knowledge about the food and cooking and I’m very thankful he shared this knowledge with me today, tack @chefsvensson ! . . #food #delicious_food #swedishfood #sweden #visitsweden #halmstad #halland #grönkål #traditions #foodporn #mysweden #newexperience #foodstagram #foodphotography #destinationhalmstad #salmon #cooking #taste #local #dish #dishoftheday

Ein Beitrag geteilt von The Local Sweden (@thelocalsweden) am Nov 21, 2018 um 1:46 PST

When and why did you move to your city? 

I moved to Sweden two months ago. I had been dreaming about moving to Sweden for more than ten years before it happened. A year ago I decided to finally make this dream come true. I had one year of studies left, so I decided to spend this year collecting money, finishing Scandinavian studies and getting ready to move to Sweden. I wanted to move to Gothenburg but it was very hard to find an apartment in the city…. so I started to give up the hope and then one day we went out with students and teachers from Scandinavian studies.

I talked about my dream and I heard that my Swedish teacher had an apartment to rent in Halmstad. I googled the city, took a walk on Google Maps and liked what I saw. The next day I told them I would love to rent the apartment.

And that’s how I ended up living here. It was all down to chance. But I really enjoy living here and this morning, when I was taking a walk in the city centre, I felt that I'm probably falling in love with the city.

Even if it’s autumn and it’s grey and cold in here there is some magic on the streets of Halmstad. 

What do you love the most about your city? 

I love that Halmstad is so close to the sea, and that you can cycle everywhere here and cycle paths lead you wherever you want to go. I love that the city is so calm and that it reminds me of Gdansk, the city in Poland I had been living in before I moved here. And I love that sometimes you can smell cinnamon when you pass by the cafés on the bike. 

What annoys you the most about your city?

Actually I couldn’t find anything that annoys me yet…I think I need some more time to see the disadvantages. I’m still in the first phase of falling in love with this place. Everything seems so new and so exciting that I don’t see these small things that probably will annoy me in the future. 

How should I spend a day in your city? 

You should start your day from breakfast or morning coffee at Skånskan, then take a walk along the river and then along the coast enjoying the Prins Bertils stig. You can take a break somewhere on the path, there are many places where you can light up a bonfire so I can recommend to roast food over a fire and enjoy your lunch somewhere ute i naturen (out in nature). And in the evening you should watch the sunset over Halmstad, maybe on the Galgberget.

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 

It’s after midnight so it’s time to tell you this story. The story of #Galgberget. This morning I took you with me to the very popular viewpoint in Halmstad. Nowadays people go there to take a walk, to take some pictures or to take morgonfika (morning coffee ☕️) as I did. But around 400 years ago there weren’t many people who went there because they wanted to. Galgberget, which literally means The Gallows hill, was an executions place until 1850s! Highly recommended to visit when you are in #Halmstad. First picture was taken this morning. Second picture is from one sunny October day. ?☺️ #visithalmstad #visithalland #destinationhalmstad #visitsweden #sweden #mysweden @halmstadcity @halmstadskommun @visithalland #adventuretime #discoversweden

Ein Beitrag geteilt von The Local Sweden (@thelocalsweden) am Nov 16, 2018 um 3:29 PST

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