Sweden: Life sentence for 18-year-old who killed two female high school teachers

Court in Sweden sentenced today to life imprisonment an 18-year-old student who killed in March axed two female teachers at the high school where he attended.

The young man was arrested shortly after the attack on the school, Malmö Latin School in Malmö (southern Sweden), Sweden’s third largest city. Specializing in the teaching of Art, this school has more than 1,000 students.

“These are two very brutal murders and the victims suffered a great deal,” Judge Johan Quart said in a statement, adding that the young man’s behavior could only be seen as “particularly gruesome”.

According to judicial sources, the student is the youngest person to be sentenced to life imprisonment in Sweden’s modern history. It preceded the amendment of a law that provided for reduced sentences for young suspects of serious crimes.

The Malmö court said it was unable to determine a clear motive for the killings.

The young man pleaded guilty and told the court that he believed he had no place in society, but did not have the courage to kill himself and thought he would not make it out of high school alive.

A psychiatric assessment showed that he suffers from autism spectrum disorders, but according to the court there is nothing to indicate that he suffers from a “serious psychiatric disorder”.

The young man’s lawyer, Anders Ellison, had asked for a more lenient sentence because of his client’s psychiatric difficulties. He told local media that he plans to appeal.

In Sweden, a person sentenced to life can ask for a reduction of his sentence after ten years, which is often granted. In practice, life sentences are therefore reduced to an average of 16 years in prison, according to Swedish prison authorities.

RES-EMP

Read the News today and get the latest news.
Follow Skai.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news.