One evening last August, Lucas gives his mother a long hug before heading off to see a classmate. It will be the last embrace and the last time Åsa Lindström sees her son in life. That same night, Lucas is abused – and after being treated for a month in Karolinska’s intensive care unit, he dies.
– We had an incredibly difficult period where we were torn between hope and despair, and you pray to all the gods you didn’t think existed and hope that a miracle will happen. But there was no miracle. He will never come back, says the mother to TV4 Nyheterna.
The boy tracks Lucas via Snapchat
Once Lucas is at his classmate’s house, that August night last year, he connects with a guy on Snapchat – who allegedly strangled his best friend during a party, the preliminary investigation says.
Lucas writes a message to the boy, who was 15 at the time:
“Brother you have strangled my pal. Not okay. Apologize and it’s over.”
The boy becomes aggressive and threatens Lucas’ life.
“You play completely on my head. We’ll get you.”
Lucas then backs away and sends several messages, apologizing. But it was already too late.
According to the preliminary investigation, the boy has found out where Lucas is via the map function in Snapchat and got into his a-tractor and drove to the location. Arriving at the house, he attacks Lucas.
The boy has admitted through questioning that he hit Lucas twice, but according to testimony, Lucas received several punches and kicks from the 15-year-old and another younger boy. In questioning, witnesses say that Lucas is also threatened with a knife. He is then taken to hospital by ambulance.
Later, three police officers knock on Åsa Lindström’s home and ask her to identify a bracelet and a mobile phone.
– I can see right away that it was Lucas’s things, she says.
The mother: “He was our little ray of sunshine”
After this, a nightmare journey starts for the family and for a month he is treated in hospital before the doctors are forced to realize that the injuries are too severe.
– Lucas was our everything. He was our little ray of sunshine. The singing and music have stopped at our house, it’s very quiet, says Åsa Lindström.
On Monday, the trial began against the now 16-year-old boy, who is accused of murder. For Lucas’ mother, it feels good to soon be able to leave the legal process behind.
– It actually feels like we are getting an ending. We know that we have already been through the worst, to see our son die and not get him back, to see him languish in the hospital every day. It has been such a nightmare situation, which we really wouldn’t wish on any other parent.
As a mother, how can you go through something like this?
– You die inside when something like this happens. You are completely numb. We died with Lucas and it’s a long way for us to be able to find some joy and some laughter again, but we feel we have to for his sake.
– I can feel that somewhere he is telling us to move on and that we must be strong. He is not the person who had been angry for a long time. He was the person who wanted everyone to be friends and like each other. So in his spirit, we must try to be forgiving and move on, she says.
Want to see a safety net for young people
For Åsa Lindström, it is important in the future to do something positive in Lucas’s memory.
– We cannot see that anything good comes from hatred. We do not want to contribute to that kind of dialogue. On the other hand, we want to contribute to the dialogue around the fact that we should help children, help young people who end up astray. It feels like an important thing that we want to do in Lucas’ name.
– We have to find a solution for how we actually help our children to actually report when something goes wrong, because children see things. We need to be able to have that safety net for them. In large workplaces they have whistleblower functions, why don’t we have that for our children?
Lucas had just turned 17 before he died, but was 16 when the assault took place. He was the youngest in a large family with several sisters.
– He was a joy spreader and was always very happy and positive. An incredibly nice guy. Not a day goes by without us mourning him and we will continue to mourn him for a long time, says Åsa Lindström.
The boy who stands accused has previously stated through his lawyer that he admitted assault, but denies that he intended to kill Lucas.