Peter Mangs

Case overview

Peter Mangs was sentenced to life in prison for murder and attempted murder connected to the Malmö shootings.

The Malmö shootings were a string of attacks by serial shooter Peter Mangs in Malmö between December 2009 and October 2010. The attacks were carried out with a 9mm Glock 19 handgun. The attacks spread fear among the immigrant population of Malmö.

Tahmoures Yassami, the leader of the Iranian-Swedish Association in Malmö, said: “Many people are frightened at the moment”, and added, “Especially families who have children.”

The local police warned against panic, pointing out that the risk for any individual of being shot was very low. They cautioned people of ethnic minorities to avoid lonely places after dark, which was when the attacks had been taking place.

Timeline

• October 10, 2009 — Trez West Persson, 20, was shot and killed while sitting in a car in Västra Skrävlinge Kyrkoväg near a mosque; her 21-year-old friend, a convicted drug-smuggler who was dark-skinned, was seriously injured.
• December 2009 — The attacks started as early as in December 2009.
• October 23, 2009 — Several shots were fired against an apartment in Hyacintgatan.
• December 31, 2009 — Shots were fired against a mosque in Jägersrovägen; no-one was hit, but an imam was injured in the neck by broken glass.
• January 25, 2010 — A 17-year-old boy was shot in the chest and a 36-year-old man was shot in the leg outside a store in Rasmusgatan; police suspected the 17-year-old was the target while the 36-year-old was shot by accident.
• March 12, 2010 — Shots were fired against a house in Hårds väg; the target was probably the 22-year-old who escaped the attack on October 10.
• March 16, 2010 — A 21-year-old and a 22-year-old were attacked at close range while sitting in a car in Professorsgatan; the 21-year-old was hit several times, while the other 21-year-old escaped unscathed.
• June 19, 2010 — Three African men were shot at while exiting a taxi in Regementsgatan; one was hit and received only a burn wound.
• June 26, 2010 — A 30-year-old man was shot through the window of a gym in Vendelfridsgatan; he was hit twice in the back.
• June 27, 2010 — Only 40 minutes after the previous shooting, a 29-year-old was shot in the shoulder while sitting in a car in Munkhättegatan.
• August 24, 2010 — A fast food restaurant in Köpenhamnsvägen was shot at; the bullet went straight through the building and hit a car on the other side, but no-one was hit; the owner claimed to have seen a laser light immediately before the shot was fired.
• September 25, 2010 — A 31-year-old man received a flesh wound to the head when he was shot outside of the university hospital.
• October 10, 2010 — A 47-year-old man was shot in the stomach at the bus stop by the intersection of Lönngatan and Norra Grängesbergsgatan; the bullet went through his body, but the injuries were not serious.
• October 19, 2010 — A 28-year-old man was shot in the back at close range while waiting for the bus by Eriksfältsgatan; the bullet pierced the victim's lung, leaving serious damage.
• October 21, 2010 — A 16-year-old boy was fired at by Hermodalstorget; he was not hit.
• November 6, 2010 — Swedish police announced that they had arrested a man they suspected was the shooter; later described as Peter Mangs.
• November 22, 2012 — Peter Mangs was sentenced to life in prison.
• September 26, 2012 — A forensic psychiatric evaluation reported that Peter Mangs did not suffer from a mental disorder.
• November 23, 2012 — A report stated that Peter Mangs was sentenced to life in prison for murder and attempted murder.
• June 2013 — The Swedish Supreme Court denied a further request for appeal.

Background

Police comparisons were made to the so-called “Laser man”, who committed eleven shootings on people of immigrant origin in the Stockholm and Uppsala area in 1991–92, killing one.

As of 23 October 2010, as many as 15 shootings were linked to the same suspect, whom the police had not yet been able to identify.

Prosecutors alleged that the shooter targeted people of criminal background with dark skin and non-Swedish appearance.

The offence

The Malmö shootings involved shootings against people of immigrant origin in Malmö, carried out with a 9mm Glock 19 handgun.

Suspected shootings connected to the same suspect

• March 12, 2010 — Shots were fired against a house in Hårds väg; the target was probably the 22-year-old who escaped the attack on 10 October.
• March 16, 2010 — A 21-year-old and a 22-year-old were attacked at close range while sitting in a car in Professorsgatan; the 21-year-old was hit several times, while the 21-year-old escaped unscathed.
• October 21, 2010 — On the same night, two women were shot through a window in Kroksbäck.

Investigation

Swedish police linked the attacks through forensic evidence, showing that the weapon used was the same gun as the one used in several other attacks.

In detention proceedings, Prosecutor Solveig Wollstad stated that suspicions against Peter Mangs had strengthened since the arrest.

The police asked the public for tips to help them find a gunman attacking immigrants, and one tip led them to Peter Mangs. Officers followed him for weeks and eavesdropped on his telephone conversations.

Arrest

Peter Mangs was described as a 38-year-old Swedish man when arrested.

On November 6, 2010, Swedish police announced that they had arrested Peter Mangs, suspected to be the shooter.

On November 6, 2010, officers stormed Peter Mangs’s apartment after following him for weeks and eavesdropping on his telephone conversations.

Police found evidence tying Peter Mangs to the crimes inside what was described as an “orderly” home, including ammunition, a Glock pistol and silencer, and a combat vest that carried a gun barrel, a homemade mask, bullets and a large knife. Police also found a book about John Ausonius, described as “the laser man” in Sweden.

Police said he held a license for the gun and had no previous criminal record. Police spokesman Borje Sjoholm said: “He denies the allegations,” and added: “It's very hard to ask questions about the motive to a person who denies that he's done it.”

Trial

At the start of the trial, Peter Mangs pleaded not guilty.

Chief prosecutor Solveig Wollstad presented that Peter Mangs was motivated in part by a dislike of immigrants. She said: “Peter Mangs has ruthlessly ruined the lives of several people. These crimes have been committed in a terribly cold and cyncial way, completely devoid of any feeling. We argue that he had the clear intent to shoot foreigners,” according to news agency TT.

Charges and verdict during trial

Peter Mangs was facing 20 charges, and the court ruled him guilty of 13 charges, including two murders, four attempted murders, and three cases of illegal threats. In one of the three murder charges, the court did not feel that the evidence was convincing enough to find him guilty.

Chief prosecutor Solveig Wollstad argued: “The penalty for these crimes should equate to life imprisonment.” She also said: “He should definitely be punished, that is the consequence of what he has done. But to me it isn't important, I won't get my daughter back regardless. Never ever. We have to live with this for the rest of our lives,” according to the victim's mother to TT.

During trial testimony, a witness from an Asperger's meet in Lund in 2005 testified that Peter Mangs asked him if he would like “come along and shoot people”. The acquaintance also told the court he thought Peter Mangs had confessed.

When the acquaintance said “And then he explained that he had also shot an older man there. He said ‘it was me who shot the ape’,” he added that it was due to Peter Mangs’s “dramatic” tone that the witness admitted he thought Mangs was speaking the truth.

When pressed by the court, the man replied: “It’s because he doesn’t like some immigrants so much. Though he did like some other immigrants.”

Peter Mangs confessed to two charges regarding vandalism. He told the court: “I wanted to practice aiming the laser under pressure, because it’s forbidden to shoot inside the town.” He also told the court: “They can become tourist attractions,” when refusing to pay a 2,150 kronor repair fee.

Peter Mangs told the courtroom: “I’m not your typical person,” and recounted his relations with Sweden’s social and education system, the labour market, and the psychiatric care scheme.

Sentencing

Peter Mangs was sentenced to life in prison in the Malmö District Court on November 22, 2012.

At sentencing, he was sentenced for two murders, five attempted murders and three cases of making aggravated illegal threats. He was ordered to pay damages of over 1.1 million kronor.

The court wrote: “extreme recklessness and a complete lack of empathy for other people”.

The court also wrote: “Based on the forensic psychiatric evidence presented in the case, Peter Mangs didn't suffer from any serious mental illness at the time of the deeds or during examinations. Thus there is no reason to give him special treatment when it comes to his punishment,”

Peter Mangs’s lawyer Jesper Montan said: “We’ve known for a long time that Mangs would get a tough penalty,” to the TT news agency.

A report also stated that Peter Mangs had accused a lay judge who heard the case of bias and demanded a retrial, but his request was rejected.

Appeals

The Malmö Appeals Court denied an attempt by Mangs to overturn his sentence. It convicted him of an additional three attempted murders on April 25, 2013.

The Swedish Supreme Court refused him leave to appeal in June of the same year, and a final end was described as being put to what Malmö residents called a period of terror.

Outcome

The Swedish Supreme Court denied Peter Mangs’s appeal attempt in June 2013, after the Malmö Appeals Court had convicted him of an additional three attempted murders on April 25, 2013.

The verdict and final appeal result meant that Peter Mangs’s life sentence remained.

Other details

A forensic psychiatric evaluation report revealed that Peter Mangs did not suffer from a mental disorder. The forensic psychiatrist said: “Peter Mangs didn't commit these actions under the influence of a serious psychiatric disorder”, and the statement added that it judged he wasn’t suffering from mental problems at the time of the assessment.

The statement said: “There is no reason to hand Peter Mangs over to psychiatric care”.

The trial was scheduled to begin again on October 3, and the psychiatric evaluation findings were to be presented in court.

A man named Stefan Eldevall, 39, said: “It was a frightening time when Mangs was at large particularly for women. I spoke about it a lot with my family.” He added: “When he was caught it was a big relief...now he has been given life which, to be honest, is the only obvious sentence.”