The prosecutor closed her case by demanding 14 years in prison – the maximum penalty for this kind of offence.

Niklas Eliasson stands accused of a total of 17 offences since 2005, of which 14 concern sex offences. All the offences were committed in Örebro in eastern Sweden.

Eliasson has admitted to all offences, but has found it hard to explain why he committed them. The women are now suing him for a total of 1.2 million kronor ($191,000)

The assistant chief prosecutor Pia Åsberg argued in her concluding speech that he be put through a psychiatric examination.

According to his lawyer Margareta Arvidsson, Eliasson has requested a psychiatric examination, as he ‘doesn’t understand his own actions’.

The arrest of 24-year-old Eliasson last autumn was a relief for many Örebro residents who had lived in fear as police continued their search for the man behind a series of brutal rapes, which had been carried out over a period of several years.

The charges against the man include eight cases of attempted rape or aggravated rape, three charges of aggravated rape, two cases of assault, two cases of sexual molestation, one charged of robbery and one relating to weapons offences.

Åsberg is relived that the trial is over. It has been tough for many of the women, she told news agency TT.

“The police have done a great job, making sure that all the women have been able to attend,“ she told TT.

According to Åsberg, Eliasson has been co-operative during the proceedings but hasn’t shown much emotion.

His lawyer claims that Eliasson has found the trial difficult.

“He says the trial has been hard work, but necessary,” Arvidsson told TT.

The Örebro district court will deliver its verdict in a week’s time.