The now 35-year-old man had a relationship with the woman and was the father of her unborn child. The Göta Court of Appeal makes the same assessment as the district court – that the man intentionally killed the woman with the motive of preventing the child from being born.
"The murder was preceded by careful planning and the woman was attacked in her home. Furthermore, the man took several measures to hinder the investigation of the crime. Additionally, the woman was subjected to great suffering and strong fear of death. Moreover, the woman's death also meant that the fetus died," says the court's chairman Ann Ganelind in a press release.
The 40-year-old woman was found dead in her apartment in Linköping on March 21 last year, after her family and friends had tried to contact her by phone. The woman, who was pregnant in her 12th week, had extensive injuries and the police immediately suspected murder.
By chance, the convicted man was stopped for a police check in Stockholm barely a day later. Among other things, bloody towels and a bloody baton were found in the trunk of his car.
According to the verdict, the man killed the woman through strangulation and extensive violence against her body and head. Afterwards, he allegedly cleaned up and removed traces in the apartment.
The man is also to pay damages to the murdered woman's relatives.
