“Compliant with the way animals are halal slaughtered according to Sharia law” • New documentary
Ako Abbas, 37, was found last March killed and wrapped in a bag on Värmdö outside Stockholm.
Experts now testify that the murder has strong ritual signs.
– The ritual elements described are consistent with the way in which animals are halal slaughtered according to Sharia law, says docent Vanja Berggren.
37-year-old Ako Abbas was found in March last year, dead and wrapped in a bag on Värmdö outside Stockholm. Now experts testify that the murder may have had strong ritual elements.
– The ritual elements are consistent with the way animals are halal slaughtered according to Sharia law, says docent Vanja Berggren.
The trial about the murder of Ako Abbas ends at the beginning of next week in Nacka district court. A 25-year-old woman and her 20-year-old brother-in-law are charged with murder and grave breach of public order. The woman’s 24-year-old husband is suspected of the same crime but is still at large.
Began relationship with married woman
In the fall of 2023, Ako Abbas began a love affair with the married 25-year-old woman from Afghanistan. According to the police’s theory, the woman’s family became aware of the affair at the beginning of last year and then began planning the murder. The case is now described in a new documentary on TV4 Play.
Similar to halal slaughter
In the investigation, the police have consulted researcher Devin Rexvid at Stockholm University as an expert. He believes that several circumstances distinguish the suspected bag murder as honor-related, not least the ritual element that seems to have been part of the murder.
The forensic examination has shown that the victim’s throat was cut open from ear to ear.
– There is a very clear statement or ritual element in carrying out the murder in such a way, says Vanja Berggren, docent in public health science to TV4 Nyheterna.
There are similarities with previous cases of honor killings.
– The description of the murder is consistent with previous cases of honor killings within the Afghan culture or group in Sweden. The ritual elements described are consistent with the way animals are halal slaughtered according to Sharia law, says Vanja Berggren.
She emphasizes that the exact circumstances surrounding what happened in the apartment where the murder was committed are not known. However, the approach suggests that the motive was to restore the family’s honor after the extramarital affair.
The woman can be spared if she cooperates
A little over a month before the murder, the now accused woman reported Ako Abbas for rape. He was released after questioning and the investigation into the alleged rape is now closed. In cultures of honor, the wife is traditionally punished severely for infidelity, but if she is instead deemed to have been subjected to sexual abuse, the blame may instead fall on the husband, research into previous cases shows.
Defense counsel opposes the honor theory
The accused woman’s lawyer, Sabina Böö, believes that the murder is not honor-related.
– The prosecutors claim a context of honor, but that is not true. Being from Afghanistan does not necessarily mean that you live in an honorable context. This murder is not honor-related in any way, she tells TV4 Nyheterna.
All the defendants deny that they participated in the murder.
The bag murder at Värmdö
TV4 Nyheterna Story depicts the brutal murder with unique interviews, films and audio recordings from the preliminary investigation.