Total chaos broke out when around 1,000 people clashed during the Eritrean cultural festival which started yesterday at Eggeby farm.
Cars were vandalized, several of which were set on fire, stones were thrown and sticks were used as weapons in the violent riots. On Friday, 14 people were still being treated in hospital for serious injuries.
TV4 Nyheterna can now say that the police received information about feared riots almost a day before the dramatic scenes erupted.
The warning: Disturb and threaten
On Wednesday, Danish police contacted the national operational department, Noa, and announced that groups in several different buses were on their way to the festival in northwestern Stockholm, according to information given to TV4 Nyheterna.
– In the intelligence, it was stated that the purpose of their trip to Järvafältet was to disturb and threaten, and that there had been major disturbances at the previous festivals, says a source.
The Swedish National Police then forwarded the information to the police in Stockholm. They also connected several other police regions in order to keep an eye out for the buses.
Later on Wednesday evening, the police in Denmark contacted us again and stated that they had stopped almost 70 Eritreans at the German border. They then traveled in buses that were registered in the Netherlands and stated themselves that they were on their way to Stockholm to demonstrate against the cultural festival.
– They rejected Denmark and at the same time warned the Swedish police that the groups are learning to enter Sweden via another route. Denmark also sent the registration numbers of four different buses to Noa, says another source and states that the police are questioning the prepared personnel withdrawal.
The police: Not prepared for the capital of violence
Mats Eriksson, press spokesperson for the police in Stockholm, confirms that they had information that demonstrators were on their way to Sweden.
– The fact that we received information from other countries – and other information – is the reason why the police increased staffing and preparations for the public gatherings at Eggeby farm.
To the Express says police spokesperson Daniel Wikdahl:
– Now our resources were not enough to keep the people at the scene and prevent crime and we were not prepared for them to have such a capital of violence as they had anyway.
The police decided on Friday to withdraw the permit for counter-demonstrations due to the risk of new violence. They have also prepared for new riots after information that more demonstrators are on their way to Järva. According to information to TV4 Nyheterna, the Stockholm police have called in resources from other parts of the country. The reinforcement consists of so-called SPT police officers, who, among other things, have riot training.