A Norwegian man living in Sweden denies he did anything wrong when he placed his dead partner, also Norwegian, in the couple’s freezer. He’s not charged with murdering her, but rather with dismembering her corpse and then fraudulently collecting her pension payments after failing to report her death.
The woman had been reported missing by her family in Agder, southern Norway, after they lost contact with her. Every time they visited the couple’s home, the 55-year-old defendant told them she was simply out, or sleeping, and later that she no longer wanted contact with her family.
Police finally ransacked their home in Årjäng and found the woman’s body in the freezer. Forensics experts believe she died from an illness, and that her body parts were placed in the freezer in 2018. Police found frozen food placed on top of them.
The defendant initially hadn’t contested the charges against him, but did so in court this week. Now he claims that while he found his partner dead, she later rose from the dead. He then declined comment to questions from the prosecution.
He has earlier told police that he placed her body in the freezer because she wanted to be buried on their farm. Since she died in the winter, he claimed, that wasn’t possible because of frozen ground. He has admitted to using her bank account but claims it was a joint account and that he only withdrew money together with her.
Court-appointed psychiatrists have earlier determined that he didn’t suffer from mental illness in 2018 and still doesn’t. His defense attorney disagrees. The trial is taking place in the closest county court in Karlstad.
NewsinEnglish.no staff
