Sweden - Olof Palme, 59, Stockholm, 28 Feb 1986

wfgodot

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Guardian:

Sweden relaunches Olof Palme murder inquiry

Sweden has announced the relaunch of an investigation into the 1986 murder of its prime minister, Olof Palme, which is still a mystery despite countless leads.

Palme was gunned down in the street after leaving a Stockholm cinema with his wife, a killing that sent shockwaves through the country.

The gunman ran off with the murder weapon, leaving the charismatic Social Democratic leader dying in a pool of blood on the pavement. More than 10,000 people were questioned and 134 claimed responsibility for the crime but the case has never been solved.
---
more at the links

Guardian 02.2014: Olof Palme murder inquiry takes another twist with revoked alibi
 
They're not going anywhere with these new investigations on Olof Palme murder.
Unfortunately I think there was a massive plot to kill him...
 
The assassination of the Swedish prime minister Olof Palme in 1986 might be solved. Swedish LE will hold a big press conference tomorrow. The press conference will be streamed on YouTube.

"Now, more than 34 years later, Sweden's Prosecutor's Office has announced it will present the conclusions of its criminal investigation in a press conference scheduled for Wednesday morning."

Who assassinated this prime minister and why?

Sweden to present findings on Olof Palme assassination

Vem mördade Olof Palme? Den evighetslånga mordgåtan når sin klimax – vi går igenom vad som gäller

34 år efter mordet – på onsdag kommer besked i Palmeutredningen
 
https://www.thelocal.se/20200219/ex...nister-34-years-ago-is-back-in-the-news-today
19 February 2020 rbbm.
''What do I need to know about the Palme murder?
Olof Palme was killed on February 28th, 1986, after leaving a cinema in Stockholm and was walking home with his wife Lisbet. Palme tried to live a normal life in many ways, which included often going out without bodyguards, and on the night in question he had dismissed his bodyguards for the evening before making the cinema plans with his wife and son.

After saying goodnight to their son and his partner, the couple began their journey home. An attacker approached them and shot Palme from behind, as well as grazing Lisbet with a second bullet. Although passersby tried to revive the 59-year-old leader, it was later found that he had died almost immediately.

The shocking nature of the murder has been described as a turning point in the national psyche, marking the first murder of a politician in Sweden.''
''What else should I know about Olof Palme?
Palme led the Social Democrat Party and had two stints as prime minister. He was best known as an excellent speaker, and an impromptu speech he gave on holiday in Gotland laid the foundations for Almedalen Week, today the country's major political festival. His debating style was viewed by some as aggressive or arrogant, and his outspoken nature caused disagreements with many, including due to his criticism of the US over the Vietnam War.''
''In Sweden, he introduced many of the policies that are today synonymous with the country's welfare state, overseeing the introduction of paid parental leave, universal daycare, and the right to free abortion. ''

''Sweden removed the statute of limitations for murder cases back in 2010, partly so that the Palme investigation could continue.''
 
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strange. it doesn't sound to me like they are even 90 percent sure this is the man that did it, but they are going to blame it on the dead guy. but ok, sweden. MOO.


Åklagaren: ”Skandiamannen” mördade Olof Palme

The 34-year-long investigation has come to an end.

"Skandiamannen" Stig Engström is identified as the one who murdered Sweden's former prime minister Olof Palme on Sveavägen 1986.

This is stated by Chief Prosecutor Krister Petersson at Wednesday's press conference.

The message that "Skandiamannen" Stig Engström murdered former Prime Minister Olof Palme came at Wednesday's press conference.

"Because that person is dead, I cannot prosecute but have decided to close the preliminary investigation," says prosecutor Krister Petersson.

According to investigative leader Hans Melander, Stig Engström came on track when a new investigative group was appointed and they then started going through the old material again. Active work began in the fall of 2017.

- We then concluded that one person did not agree with the other picture, a person who did not fit in. His tasks could not be reconciled with the other witnesses, says Hans Melander.

Can't rule out conspiracy
Krister Petersson also says that they investigated whether Stig Engström acted alone or was part of a larger conspiracy.

- We have not been able to find any support for a conspiracy. But that can't be dismissed, says Petersson.


0c50262f-7c13-4cdd-bb39-d2fb12714361

PHOTO: POLICE
Stig Engström.

Further, Krister Peterson explains that Engström was used to using weapons.

- But we have no clear tasks that can put a weapon in the hand of Stig Engström. We have seized at least one weapon that matched the caliber used, but unfortunately we did not receive a positive response from the National Forensic Center. But given what is happening, he must have had a weapon in his hand that evening, Peterson notes.

No one has seen Engström
He also adds that few witnesses have seen the face of the killer but that the more noticed the attire.

- None of the witnesses who have been at the crime scene have pointed out that Stig Engström has been at the crime scene at all. If he has been there, he has disappeared before giving any impression to any witness.

- No one has been able to provide information about him.

That it has been 34 years since the murder is aggravating, Peterson says, as several witnesses have become old and affected by what has been written and said about the murder.

- We have noticed that the information provided by the witnesses varies quite considerably from the first interrogations and later, which has made investigative work more difficult.

- Of all the judgments, the technical evidence will not be able to give us any help. We have to assess what happened to existing material.

788 weapons have been shot
A total of 788 weapons have been shot in the investigation.

"The weapons part is obviously both central and interesting," says Hans Melander, adding that there is evidence to indicate that the weapon is a revolver.

The investigators have also looked at a large number of bullets.

The bullet that killed Palme, and the one that turned at wife Lisbeth is of the Winchester type. The caliber is 357 Magnum, Melander explains.

- Unfortunately there are very few traces on the balls. They are also demolished.

According to Melander, they are sure that the right bullets have been found. However, you do not think it is possible to attach a weapon to the actual bullets.

Largest investigation in Sweden
Furthermore, Hans Melander explains that the Palme investigation, which has been going on for 34 years, is one of the world's largest police investigations.

- It is usually compared to the murder of John F Kennedy. It is by far the largest investigation conducted in Sweden.

The investigation contains over 22,000 views and about 90,000 people. More than 10,000 people are heard, of which drug addict Sigge Cedergren most times.

"He has been heard 43 times," says Hans Melander.

134 people have acknowledged
A total of 134 people have admitted the murder, and 29 have admitted directly to the police.

Hans Melander also explained the different tracks you worked on.

Among other things, the 33-year-old and Christer Pettersson.

However, the 33-year-old was able to write off the investigation group relatively easily, says Melander, and Christer Pettersson, who was sentenced in the district court for the murder, with acquittal in the High Court.

"Nothing concrete to walk on"
There is also a "Christer A", who lived near the crime scene and had a weapon that could be of the same model as the murder weapon.

However, he has not been able to show the weapon, and the investigation has not been able to find it.
Furthermore, Melander mentions the PKK track, with which the first investigative leader Hans Holmér worked actively, as well as South Africa and the so-called police track.

- The problem is that you don't get anything specific. Unfortunately, there is not that much concrete so you can do so much about it, Melander says.

FACTS
"The Skandiamannen" Stig Engström


►Born in 1934 in India, where the family stayed when their father was placed in the country through their work. The family lived in a villa with servants, nanny and chef, according to the book The Enemy of the Nation: about the murder of Olof Palme, written by Lars Larsson.

►When Engström was 11, he came to Sweden and was placed in boarding school. He did not pass the final exam and was allowed to throw out the back path without a degree, while the classmates ran out, according to the book The unlikely killer of journalist Thomas Pettersson.

►In the military, things went better. Under the auspices, he was trained as a platoon commander and reached the sergeant's degree. He remained in the military for a few more years, illustrating manuals at the Royal Army Fabric Administration, the current Defense Materiel Administration.

►Later he trained in graphics and drawing and got a job at the Swedish Broadcasting Corporation. Then Stig Engström worked for a time on Sweden's television before getting a job as an advertising consultant at Skandia, on Sveavägen in Stockholm.
► In a Swedish article, Engström talks about how he had undergone a crisis a few years earlier in which he questioned his career and what life is all about.

►In the early 1980s, Stig Engström became involved in municipal politics, for the Moderates. According to several people whom Thomas Pettersson has spoken to, he must have liked Olof Palme badly. However, these people do not say that Stig Engström was capable of murdering him.

► Stig Engström died in 2000, 66 years old.



Source: TT
 
June 10 2020 rbbbm.
Prosecutors In Sweden Finally Close Case On 1986 Assassination Of Olof Palme

Stig Engström, also known as "Skandia man," photographed outside Skandia's offices in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1986.

''Pettersson, a petty criminal, was found guilty of the assassination in 1989, but his conviction was overturned the following year in a decision citing lack of evidence – most notably the absence of a murder weapon, which investigators believed to have been a .357 Smith & Wesson Magnum. Christer Pettersson died in 2004.

In a 2018 interview with The New York Times, Thomas Petterson, the journalist, said Engström, who had served in the military, had access to the same kind of weapon used in the assassination, had been active in a shooting club and had political and private motives.

The journalist, who said he had investigated the case for 12 years, also noted that Engström had lied to police, had "the right timing, the right clothing ... unique information," and that he had "a deep political interest and a deep anti-Palme sentiment."
 
Sorry for two posts in a row, but this link seems to contradict the one above regarding motive.. rbbm.
Doubts remain as Sweden closes case of Olof Palme assassination after 34 years
“It is my sincere hope that this wound can now be allowed to heal,” Prime Minister Stefan Lofven told reporters at a news conference, describing the murder as a national trauma.

But the suspicion of many Swedes is unlikely to be satisfied by Wednesday’s accusation, against a long dead suspect with no political profile, based on evidence the prosecutor acknowledged would have been too thin to secure a conviction.


“The Palme investigation concluded in the manner that has defined it since the very beginning: a great anticlimax,” daily newspaper Dagens Nyheter said. “Instead of clarity concerning the issue of guilt, we got a monument to a policing fiasco.”
 
Wow, what a farce! This seems worse than blaming JFK on LHO. 35 years of investigation and this is what they came up with. "Yeah, we solved it.....too bad the guy is dead. Everyone can focus on other things now....Nothing to see here"
 
May 12 2023
''Engstrom was a graphic designer for Skandia insurance who police had initially dismissed as an attention seeker.

But even after they brought him back into the frame, they had no clear evidence tying him to the 1986 murder.

Chief prosecutor Krister Petersson admitted: “We have no clear information that can put a gun in the hand of Stig Engstrom.”

“We hope that this will be accepted by the public.”
 
There was a documentary on this; possibly Netflix. The problem with the investigation is that they have never been able to place anyone with a motive, which would presumably mean a political opponent of Palme, anywhere near the crime scene. They have also never linked anyone with possible motives to a .357 Smith and Wesson which was not that common in Sweden at the time.

The case against Engstrom seemed real thin. He was there at the scene around the time of the shooting as were a few others. During the early days of the investigation, Engstrom was very cooperative with the police but he was suspected of embellishing what he had actually seen in order to make himself more important to the investigation. That is hardly unusual for witnesses to crimes to do. He was known to be a moderate Conservative without strong political opinions so he wasn’t considered a suspect. Later it was found that he was a bit of a “social climber” who had acquaintances who were very conservative so it was speculated that he might have killed Palme to impress them. He was not known to have ever claimed to anyone that he was the shooter. He also had a friend who did own a .357 Smith and Wesson and he had access to that friend’s home. The gun was no longer available for testing. The is no evidence that he ever processed that gun. The theory that he was the shooter pretty much comes down to the fact that he was near the crime scene, he was not honest about what he saw, he may have had a motive and he may have had access to a gun similar to the murder weapon. If he did it, it would have been unplanned. His workplace was near the theater. He could have noticed Palme going in while he was taking a break from work and simply went out at the time the film was due to end and waited for Palme to leave theater. He would have just happened to have a gun he “borrowed” with him in the office at the time. It is all pretty speculative. He did not really fit the description of the shooter but no one may have had a good look. That is pretty much it.
 
I'm going to reply in much greater detail tomorrow. But, as a starter; is there any evidence that the police can prove that a .357 Magnum pistol was involved rather than a .38 Special? These bullets were loaded into both rounds!
 
So, further to my previous; the police have always stated that a Smith & Wesson .357 Magnum revolver was used due to the nature of the two recovered bullets. If they are basing that on the bullets alone then they cannot say definitively that that particular type of firearm was used.

The .357 Magnum cartridge is identical to the .38 Special cartridge except for the former is slightly longer. This is done primarily in order that the former cannot be chambered in a revolver designed for the latter as .357 is loaded to significantly higher pressures. Pressures that lots of older .38 revolvers, which might date back to 1899, will not be able to safely handle. The extra length also provides for a greater internal volume so that more propellant can be used.

.38 Special

.357 Magnum

The particular 158 grain Winchester-Western metal piercing bullets which were recovered from the scene have been loaded into both .357 Mag and .38 Special ammunition. I have some of the latter which I'll post pics of in due course. In one of the old news reports in the documentary they were described as "armour piercing" which is not correct - they were intended to penetrate car doors and windscreens more effectively than other rounds.

This being the case, I don't know how the police arrived at a definitive decision of them being fired from a .357 weapon without having a cartridge case (which revolvers don't expel) or them having other reasons which haven't been elaborated on.

So, it could be either a .357 or a .38 revolver which was used. Personally, I would err towards being a .357 based on the witness interviews; one guy (a taxi driver, I think) described it as an extremely loud bang which tends to suggest a .357.

In addition to the above, the police have stated very definitely that the gun was a revolver made by Smith & Wesson. They called in every licensed .357 made by S&W for testing but never identified any gun as being the murder weapon. My question would be - how do they know that it was definitely made by S&W? Now, it's possible that they can identify the particular rifling pattern on the bullets as being one used only by S&W but I've seen nothing to back that up.

I seriously wonder whether it was actually a gun made by S&W at all. It's only my suspicion but I'm concerned that something may have been mixed up here; as is described on the above Wiki link, the full name of the cartridge is ".357 Smith and Wesson Magnum" because it was developed by them and a few other guys in the 1930's. Is it possible that the investigators got mixed up and assumed that only S&W make guns for this round so were only looking for S&W guns, I wonder? The cartridge has been chambered by Colt, Ruger, Dan Wesson, Starr, Astra and Taurus to name just a few. There will be dozens of others. Unless they have info to confirm it as being an S&W I'll remain skeptical.

As a point of interest, I'm loosely connected to this (very loosely); my ex, who was 5 at the time, lived about two streets away and told me years ago that she remembers hearing the sirens and commotion going on at the time.
 

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