Swedish man charged after putting dead companion in freezer and cashing in her pension
The Swedish Prosecution Authority said the man carried out "systematic" fraud involving around 1.3m kronor (拢93,000). He had told investigators he put the Norwegian woman in a freezer after finding her dead in their home, but had told family and friends the woman was still alive.
Thursday 6 July 2023 15:06, UK
A 55-year-old Swedish man has been charged with fraud and falsifying records for allegedly putting his dead companion in a freezer and cashing in her pension.
The Swedish Prosecution Authority said the man, who was not named, carried out "systematic" fraud involving around 1.3m kronor (£93,000).
He had told investigators he put the Norwegian woman in a freezer after finding her dead in their home.
The two lived in Arjang, around 211 miles west of the capital Stockholm.
The man had told family and friends the woman was still alive.
"It must have been very stressful for family and friends to learn in this way that the woman had been dead for a long time," said prosecutor Linda Karlsson.
"The man also used the freezer for other purposes, which I believe means that the deceased's grave peace was violated every time the man opened and closed the freezer and constitutes an aggravating circumstance."
The woman was discovered in the freezer on 16 March.
The man was arrested three days later and has been held in pre-trial custody since.
It was unclear when she died.
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At first investigators believed the woman had been murdered, but an investigation found nothing to back that up.
However, investigators believe the man somehow used aides to move the woman, so they did not rule out someone else was involved.
A trial has been scheduled for later this month.