Enlarge image
Crime scene in Vetlanda (in March)
Photo: MIKAEL FRITZON / EPA
Around four months after a knife attack on passers-by in the small Swedish town of Vetlanda, a 22-year-old was sentenced to life imprisonment.
In the opinion of the court, the crime was obviously not planned, but the defendant was aware that he could have killed his victims.
As a result, he was found guilty of attempted murder on seven counts.
"Terrorist motive" was written in the room
As the Eksjö District Court announced, he should also be expelled from Sweden for life and must pay compensation.
The Afghan had injured seven men between the ages of 35 and 75, some of them life-threateningly, in the attack in early March.
At that time the police had not ruled out a "terrorist motive" either.
But the investigators quickly dropped the suspicion.
The man had come to Sweden five years ago.
According to his own statements, he suffered from recurring mental health problems and his condition had worsened before the crime.
The attacks were triggered by a stranger who had denied the existence of God.
That made him go home and get a knife, said the 22-year-old.
Victims apparently chosen at random
According to the court, there was no connection whatsoever between the defendant and the victims.
Rather, everything indicated that he had chosen her at random.
However, he spared a group of schoolgirls in his attacks.
The trial was briefly suspended in early July to assess the man's mental health.
However, the court found that the defendant was not suffering from any serious mental illness at the time of the crime.
bbr / AFP / dpa