On July 30, 2021, a settlement between criminal rooms will take place in Notviken in Luleå. A 25-year-old woman is shot several times in the head and dies on the beach, and police and prosecutors begin an investigation.
About ten people were at the scene of the murder and know what happened. But only one, “Salim”, will come forward and tell everything he saw. It changes his life overnight.
– The same evening we stayed, we moved to a hotel. It was as if a war had begun in Sweden. I was afraid for my life but mostly for the life of my family, says “Salim”.
“His designation was absolutely decisive”
It is leaked that “Salim” told the police who shot the woman and the police immediately decide to protect him, his pregnant girlfriend, mother, father and two younger siblings.
From a secret location, “Salim” becomes the prosecution’s main witness in the district court.
– His identification was absolutely decisive in identifying the shooter, says Jonas Fjellström, prosecutor in the case.
Thanks to “Salim’s” tip-off, Bahnan Yusuf, a criminally charged man linked to the Shottaz network in Rinkeby, is convicted of the murder but appeals to the Court of Appeal.
The protection ends – despite the death threats
But a month and a half before the appeal court hearing, the police suddenly end all protection for “Salim” and his family, despite the death threats.
– What can happen is that someone gets to him, that he is murdered, says Jonas Fjellström.
Cold facts have had access to a note made by the police’s section for personal protection. It states that they terminated the protection of “Salim” “due to his criminal activity”.
The background is that Salim and his family had a new identity, no jobs and lived in a secret location. Salim then borrowed money from people he made contact with on Snapchat.
But he quickly realized that he had been drawn into a scam. He then decided to pay back the money to the person who had been cheated, and inform the police about what had happened.
– Both “Salim” and the other have been deceived. He is not served as a suspect, so it is for that reason that the protection is terminated so… well, I think it is insane, says prosecutor’s assistant Anna Melander.
“This is society’s thanks”
Bahnan Yusuf is finally sentenced also in the Court of Appeal to 14 years in prison for the murder of the young woman.
Without Salim’s testimony, the killer would have walked free. Salim stood by his testimony from the district court, despite the threats, and despite the police ceasing to protect him.
– A person who does what society wants you to do, to stand for your duties, and this is society’s thanks, sighs prosecutor Jonas Fjellström.
The police’s personal protection section in the North region refuses to answer any questions about “Salim’s” case. They believe it could reveal their working methods and risk the safety of everyone living under witness protection. The police’s national operational unit also does not answer questions about individual cases and says that risk assessments are made based on the circumstances of each case, but that it generally entails the termination of protection if one commits criminal acts.