Deployed deadly bomb – but denies murder

Deployed deadly bomb but denies murder
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A young woman died and several people were injured when three powerful bombs were detonated in the space of four days in the fall of 2023. All of the acts can be linked to the conflict within the Foxtrot network.

When the trial began on Monday, a young man admitted to placing the deadly bomb – but denied murder.

Three powerful bombs detonated at residential buildings in Hässelby, Linköping and in Fullerö outside Uppsala within the space of four days in September 2023.

The bombs caused widespread devastation and several people were injured in the explosions. In the explosion in Fullerö on the night of September 28, a young woman was injured so badly that she died.

– She became the victim of this bomb, a teacher who had graduated earlier that year. She was 24 years old when she lost her life, says prosecutor Thomas Bälter.

Denies murder

On this first day of the trial, all the defendants – eight men and teenage boys – are in place in the security room in Attunda district court. All deny almost everything they are accused of, but a 23-year-old man suspected of involvement in all three murders admits he planted the bomb that killed the woman.

– It is admitted that he for his own part, not jointly and in agreement with others, has transported, placed and detonated the so-called Fullerö bomb at the specified location, says his lawyer Anton Strand.

However, he denies murder because he did not intend to kill, says Strand.

The man has also previously admitted that he placed the bomb and claimed that he had to do it because he was under threat, something he will be allowed to develop when he is heard later in court.

Bloody conflict

The prosecutors otherwise spent a significant part of the day describing the internal conflict within Foxtrot which they believe is the motive for all three bombs.

The conflict that broke out in 2023 escalated when the mother of Ismail Abdo, formerly allied with Foxtrot leader Rawa Majid, was murdered in Uppsala early last September, states Thomas Bälter.

– This was the prelude to an extremely violent period, he says and continues:

– From September to mid-October 2023, over 50 serious violent crimes and planned violent crimes can be linked to the conflict.

The investigation shows that all three bombings were directed at Abdo’s rival side.

The bomb in Fullerö is believed to have been aimed at a relative of Rawa Majid, who lived next door to the 24-year-old woman. At the home in Hässelby lived a woman who could be linked to a close ally of Majid – the same man can also be linked to the family that was the target of the bomb in Linköping.

The trial will last until mid-October.

FACT Three explosions in four days

September 25, 2023: A suspected pot bomb detonates in a doorway to an apartment building in Hässelby. Several people are injured in the explosion and the property suffers extensive structural damage.

September 26, 2023: A confirmed pot bomb explodes in a doorway to an apartment building in Ekholmen in Linköping. Two people are injured in the explosion and the home suffers extensive damage.

September 28, 2023: A bomb consisting of a microwave filled with around 13 kilos of dynamite detonates in a residential area in Fullerö outside Uppsala. The bomb has been placed between two villas and a 24-year-old woman who is sleeping downstairs in one of the houses receives such severe injuries that she dies. The family living in the other house is unharmed.

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