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GÄVLE

Berry picker trafficking suspect released

The 43-year-old man held on suspicion of trafficking Bulgarian berry pickers to Sweden has been released as there was not enough evidence to prove his guilt, prosecutors announced Tuesday.

Berry picker trafficking suspect released

“His story is that he has brought his family over to pick blueberries, that they have picked for just for personal use and that there hasn’t been any shared enterprise,” said prosecutor Annika Bokefors to local paper Upsala Nya Tidning (UNT).

The man, a 43-year-old Bulgarian resident, was arrested on July 19th after allegedly luring three other Bulgarians into coming to Sweden with the promises of a good salary, a home, and a job.

But instead the workers were brought to a campsite in Mehedeby, south of Gävle, with no running water or bathroom facilities.

However, according to the Uppsala prosecutor, the police investigation has come up with nothing that proves that the man has actually committed the crime he has been accused of.

Neither does the prosecutor believe that any further investigation into the matter will uncover any such proof, reported the paper.

The man has faced similar accusations before in Sweden, but the charges were dropped at that time too due to lack of evidence.

TT/The Local/rm

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CHRISTMAS

Sweden’s Gävle Christmas goat ready to return for festive season

Sweden's straw yule goat Gävlebocken, whose biggest claim to fame is its tendency to get burned down every year, is all set for its annual return on Sunday.

Sweden's Gävle Christmas goat ready to return for festive season
The ill-fated 2016 Gävlebocken. Photo: Pernilla Wahlman/TT

Every year, the Christmas goat (Gävlebocken) in the Slottstorget square in Gävle, central Sweden, attracts a media storm with locals dreaming up new ways to protect the arson-prone 13-metre-high creation.

Despite their efforts, including in some years spraying the goat in anti-flammable liquid, the goat usually goes up in flames long before Swedes have opened their Christmas presents.

Last year, the goat surprisingly made it to Boxing Day intact, to the delight of organisers, who were reported to have put a “secret” plan into effect to protect it.

In 2016 it was less fortunate, going down in flames mere hours after its inauguration.

READ ALSO: 'Memorial' to be held for Sweden's giant yule goat

“Many people are invested” in the straw goat in Gävle, Maria Wallberg of the town’s municipality told TT.

The central Swedish town is naturally proud of its luckless Christmas decoration, despite the fact it has burned town 29 times during its 50-year history.

Thousands of people are expect to attend the unveiling of the goat on Sunday, with the ceremony to be presented by Swedish comedian Clara Henry.

“It means an incredible amount that the city has such a strong symbol which is known all over the world,” Wallberg said.

Security around the giant goat is expected to be high, both during its inauguration day and throughout December. Security guards and cameras will both be deployed to keep an eye on it behind its fencing, while a taxi rank has been moved to the square to increase the presence of people in the area.

“For security reasons, we can’t go into too much detail,” Wallberg said of any further precautions.

Historical precedent is against Gävlebocken. In its first year, 1966, it burned down on New Year’s Eve and it has only made it through the entire month on 15 occasions. It has been burned, stolen and vandalised. In 1976, someone drove a stock car into it.


Orörd = undamaged; uppeldad = burned down; annan skada = otherwise damaged; oklart öde = fate unknown. Graphic: TT

“An attack early in the season would mean cancellations at hotels and restaurants. So it is incredibly important for Gävle, Gävle’s businesses and for everyone who wants to visit the goat that it is still standing at New Year,” Wallberg said.

READ ALSO: Five weirdest attacks on Gävle's arson-prone Christmas goat

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