Swedish police say suspect in truck attack previously known

Record ID: 566516

  • Title: Swedish police say suspect in truck attack previously known
  • Date: 8th April 2017
  • Summary: STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN (APRIL 8, 2017) (REUTERS) SWEDISH POLICE OFFICIALS ARRIVE AT NEWS CONFERENCE HEAD OF SWEDEN'S NATIONAL POLICE DAN ELIASSON TALKING (SOUNDBITE) (English) HEAD OF SWEDEN'S NATIONAL POLICE, DAN ELIASSON, SAYING: (SOUNDBITE STARTS WITH IMAGE OF ANOTHER OFFICIAL AT NEWS CONFERENCE) "We have confirmed that he is a (inaudible) man from Uzbekistan, 39 years old that is what we know. In addition to that we would not like to say anything further about his whereabouts and his background." (JOURNALIST ASKING: "How long has he been in Sweden?") "I cannot tell you that either. We are focusing of course on how he has entered the country, where he has been, the kind of contacts that he has, what can we see from his friends and so on. But that is part of the investigation which we cannot of course..." (JOURNALIST ASKING: "Do you believe at this stage that he was connected to a wider network?") "We cannot either confirm or exclude that at this moment. We are still in the preliminary stages of the investigation, we need to establish what kind of contacts he had and to see whether we can draw any conclusions from that in the continuation of the investigation." (JOURNALIST ASKING: "Was he known to security services and police here?") "He was known, there was intelligence about him in the security police, as the head of the security service said, they were rather… more of a marginal character - is that rightly stated?" (JOURNALIST ASKING: "And how many more arrests have been made?") "I don't think we will address that question right now, how many people we have controlled or interviewed, have taken statements of. We are in the very very intensive part of the investigation." (JOURNALIST ASKING: "You’re referenced to London… what were you saying about that?") "There are clear similarities." (SOUNDBITE) (English) HEAD OF SWEDEN'S NATIONAL POLICE, DAN ELIASSON, SAYING: "We are of course screening, analysing his telephones, his social media, his contacts, his whereabouts, to establish contacts, links, what he has done and what he has planned to do. And when we have something to convey to you from the investigation we will of course do that. At this stage we cannot say anything." NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (English) HEAD OF SWEDEN'S NATIONAL POLICE, DAN ELIASSON, SAYING: "We have found something in the truck, in the driver's seat - a technical device which should not be there. I cannot at this stage say that this is a bomb or some sort of flammable material. We are doing a technical investigation of that at the moment and we will have to revert to that further on in the investigation." NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (English) HEAD OF SWEDEN'S NATIONAL POLICE, DAN ELIASSON, SAYING: "The police effort remains comprehensive and strong today and will be tomorrow and the days after that as well. A preliminary investigation regarding the suspected terrorist crime has been initiated. A man with links to the incident was arrested this morning at quarter past one a.m. The man arrested is suspected of being the one who drove the car. We recommend that the public remain cautious and vigilant, even though life and our daily routines need to go on also in the central parts of Stockholm. Parts of central Stockholm remain closed off during this morning and it's important that these cordons be respected. The Swedish police have intensified their surveillance and their presence at locations where many people gather in order to create safety and prevent any further criminal activity. The police have confirmed that four individuals have been killed and that 15 have been injured. These numbers may be subject to changes." NEWS CONFERENCE ENDING
  • Embargoed: 22nd April 2017 13:31
  • Keywords: truck Stockholm attack police suspect Uzbekistan arrest Eliasson
  • Location: STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN
  • City: STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN
  • Country: Sweden
  • Topics: Crime/Law/Justice,Crime
  • Reuters ID: LVA0016BJF70N
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: AUDIO AS INCOMING AND QUALITY AS PART INCOMING
    EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: A FULL VERSION OF THE NEWS CONFERENCE WILL BE AVAILABLE ON EDIT NUMBER 6082
    The man in custody suspected of carrying out the Stockholm truck attack has previously figured in intelligence material, Swedish security police said on Saturday (April 8).
    National Police chief Dan Eliasson confirmed that the suspect is a 39-year-old from Uzbekistan and said that police were examining a device found in the driver's seat of the truck.
    Four people were killed and 15 were injured on Friday (April 7) when the hijacked beer delivery truck rammed into a crowd in central Stockholm, in what police called a terror crime.
    There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
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