In October 2020, a man was shot dead at a bus stop in Märsta – in the middle of the day and in front of witnesses – by a lone perpetrator on an electric scooter.
The basic question for the courts has been what requirements can be placed on circumstantial evidence in order for it to be sufficient for a conviction.
None of the witnesses had seen the killer’s face and after the crime the perpetrator quickly disappeared from the scene.
A few months later, a 25-year-old suspect was arrested, who was later charged with murder. In his home there was a jacket with traces of blood from the man who was shot dead, DNA traces from the 25-year-old and fuse particles from the type of ammunition used in the murder. Among the cartridge cases found at the crime scene were also DNA traces from the 25-year-old.
He also had access to an electric scooter and was in the area at the time of the murder. He lacks an alibi and has had the opportunity to commit the crime in terms of time.
In the district court, the 25-year-old was sentenced to life imprisonment, but in the court of appeal he was acquitted, because the court considered that an alternative perpetrator could not be completely ruled out.
During the trial in the Supreme Court, the 25-year-old did not participate. After the acquittal in the Court of Appeal, he is assumed to have left the country.