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Explained: Why the killing of Sweden’s prime minister 34 years ago is back in the news today

Has Sweden found the person who killed the prime minister 34 years ago? As the prosecutor working on the investigation reports that the case could soon be closed, we explain what you need to know about the case and why it's back in the headlines.

Published: 19 February 2020 11:10 CET
Explained: Why the killing of Sweden's prime minister 34 years ago is back in the news today
Will Sweden's longest running murder investigation soon come to a close? Photo: Tobbe Gustavsson/TT/Scanpix

Why are we talking about this now?

The long-running investigation into the murder of Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme may reach a conclusion as soon as this summer, the chief prosecutor on the case told public broadcaster SVT.

“I am optimistic about being able to present what happened with the murder and who is responsible for it,” prosecutor Krister Petersson said on the programme Veckans Brott, but did not say whether he believed he would bring charges against the suspect. 

This could mean that Petersson believes the person responsible has since died, or it may be that the investigation will be closed.

And another reason that the case is back in the news is because, well, it's never really been out of it. New theories, potential suspects and comment on the investigation have been in the tabloids regularly for decades now. The fact that the anniversary of the murder is approaching at the end of the month is another factor.

What do I need to know about the Palme murder?

Olof Palme was killed on February 28th, 1986, after leaving a cinema in Stockholm and was walking home with his wife Lisbet. Palme tried to live a normal life in many ways, which included often going out without bodyguards, and on the night in question he had dismissed his bodyguards for the evening before making the cinema plans with his wife and son.

After saying goodnight to their son and his partner, the couple began their journey home. An attacker approached them and shot Palme from behind, as well as grazing Lisbet with a second bullet. Although passersby tried to revive the 59-year-old leader, it was later found that he had died almost immediately.

The shocking nature of the murder has been described as a turning point in the national psyche, marking the first murder of a politician in Sweden. 

What else should I know about Olof Palme?

Palme led the Social Democrat Party and had two stints as prime minister. He was best known as an excellent speaker, and an impromptu speech he gave on holiday in Gotland laid the foundations for Almedalen Week, today the country's major political festival. His debating style was viewed by some as aggressive or arrogant, and his outspoken nature caused disagreements with many, including due to his criticism of the US over the Vietnam War.

In Sweden, he introduced many of the policies that are today synonymous with the country's welfare state, overseeing the introduction of paid parental leave, universal daycare, and the right to free abortion. 

Palme was survived by his wife, Lisbet, who died in 2018, and their three children.


Palme speaking at Almedalen in Visby, Gotland. Photo: Andi Loor / SvD / TT

What's happened in the investigation since his murder?

Huge efforts have been made to track down the killer. More than 10,000 people have been interviewed and over 130 have claimed responsibility for the murder.

Police were criticized for their actions in the early stages of the investigation, including failing to cordon off the scene promptly, which could have meant potential forensic evidence was destroyed. The bullets were found by a member of the public, and the gun used in the murder was never found.

Prosecutor Krister Petersson has been leading the so-called Palme Group since 2017, which today consists of him and four police officers.

Over the years, there have been many theories about what may have happened, which have suggested both individuals and groups as potential perpetrators.

A man named Christer Pettersson, who had a previous conviction for manslaughter, was in 1988 convicted of the murder after Lisbet Palme identified him in a lineup. But he was later acquitted by a court of appeal, and died in 2004.

How are people reacting to the new statements?

Palme expert Gunnar Wall told TT that the statements were “surprising”.

He added: “If the Chief Prosecutor is now close to a solution, Sweden might be able to put the murder behind it. Most would be pleased about that. If there are no big questions left to answer, the murder will be put to rest among other historical events. [But] The answer may include things that raise more questions.”

However, professor Kjell Östberg noted: “If it is found that it has been possible to solve the murder after almost 35 years but has not been done before, I think many will ask why it has taken so long.”


Mourners and members of the public at the scene of the murder. Photo: Lasse Hedberg/TT/Scanpix

And what will happen next?

Sweden removed the statute of limitations for murder cases back in 2010, partly so that the Palme investigation could continue.

But if the chief prosecutor's comments were accurate, the investigation will either be closed this year, or charges will be brought against the suspect if they are still alive.
 

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POLICE

Swedish police leaks scandal: How gang criminals got hold of sensitive information

A new report in Dagens Nyheter has revealed over 514 suspected leaks of sensitive information from at least 30 members of the police force to criminals since 2018. Here's what we know so far.

Published: 30 April 2024 12:28 CEST
Updated: 30 April 2024 15:45 CEST
Swedish police leaks scandal: How gang criminals got hold of sensitive information

What’s happened?

According to an investigative report by newspaper Dagens Nyheter (DN), multiple gang members have infiltrated the police force by, for example, dating police employees, or using family connections to gain access to sensitive information about ongoing cases.

The first article in DN’s series focuses on a woman the newspaper calls Elin, who met a man, Jonas (not his real name), on a dating app when she had one year left of her police education. She falls in love, but his only goal with the relationship is to get a source within the police force which he can use for access to secret information.

Over the course of four years until she was caught, she made multiple illegal searches in the police register for Jonas, his associates and enemies, as well as providing him with information on ongoing investigations against him.

Other cases investigated by the newspaper include a border guard who sold classified information to gangs, a police officer who leaked information to what DN describes as “one of Sweden’s most notorious criminals” and an investigator who was dating a man she was investigating, who she shared screenshots of sensitive information with.

In another case, the police received a tip-off that information was being leaked to the Hells Angels motorcycle gang. It was discovered that a group of five alarm operators had made an unusually high number of searches for members of the Hells Angels, who were later discovered to have connections with the gang that they had lied about during their background checks.

What have the consequences of these leaks been?

In some cases, the leaks preceded revenge attacks on enemies of the gang member involved in the relationship. In other cases, the gang members’ enemies disappeared or were murdered.

Some of the people from the police force involved in the leaks were sentenced to fines for illegal data access or breaches of professional secrecy, while the evidence against others was not sufficient to prosecute. 

At least 30 employees had for different reasons been considered “security risks” and either resigned or were forced to quit, the newspaper reported, with over 514 suspected leaks taking place from police to criminals since 2018.

How do criminals find police officers?

According to DN, they look for things that can be used as blackmail, like police officers who buy drugs, or set “honey traps”, like the one used against Elin, where they meet police officers or students on dating apps and start a relationship.

“You take Tinder, for example, and set your search radius so the police school is in the centre. When you get a match, it’s easy to check if it’s a student, through class lists or how they present themselves on social media. They’re proud of their line of work,” Jonas told DN.

They might also use their family connections to put pressure on relatives who work in the police force.

Why is this important?

It’s important because Sweden has seen a rise in gang-related violence in recent years, with a surge in shootings and bombings as gangs fight for control over different drug markets.

Swedes also have a high level of trust in the police force – 72 percent according to a 2024 study by Medieakademin, topping the list of state authorities, with a higher level of trust than universities, healthcare, the courts and even the Swedish church. This was five percent higher than in 2023.

Although the vast majority of police officers do not leak information to criminal networks, Sweden does not have a history of organised crime infiltrating the police force, so officials are keeping a close eye on these leaks to make sure they don’t become more common.

On April 29th, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson told TT newswire that the leaks were “very serious”, potentially putting trust in the police force at risk.

“There are many great risks and one is that trust in police declines, that people get the idea that mafia-like methods are used to infiltrate law enforcement,” he said, before adding that he was unable to say whether it constituted a threat to national security or not purely based on the initial DN article.

“But the mere suspicion of these types of connections are damaging,” he told the newswire.

What happens now?

Justice Minister Gunnar Strömmer told DN that he planned to call a meeting with police leadership about the reports, which he described as “extremely serious”.

“[At that meeting] we will consider the need for further measures,” he said.

“Leaking sensitive information to criminals is against the law and can have very damaging consequences for the work of the police force,” Strömmer told DN, adding that it could undermine trust in the police and “damage democracy”.

Last summer, the government increased the penalty for breaching professional secrecy, and a special investigator was tasked with looking at a potential reform of the rules on corruption and professional misconduct in February – the Crime Prevention Council is also involved in that investigation, where it has been asked to provide information on how gangs use government employees.

“Protecting the integrity of the justice system against infiltration and other security threats is a central part of the new national strategy against organised crime that the government decided on earlier this year, and it is given the highest priority in our assignments to the authorities,” Strömmer told the newspaper.

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