After the school attack in Finland: "I was thinking directly about Trollhättan"

Another school attack in which the perpetrator killed with a sword has occurred. This time at a vocational school in Finland. One death and ten injured students and staff at the school and also a police officer who was slightly injured.

- It is sad but not unexpected for these school attacks to come in waves. Finland is the country most affected in the Nordic countries when it comes to school attacks, says Åsa Erlandsson, journalist at SVT and author of the book about the school attack in Trollhättan four years ago.

On social media, many people compare the incident in Finland to what happened in Trollhättan. And according to Åsa Erlandsson, there are several similarities between today's school attack and that of four years ago.

- Both offenders in Trollhättan and the now suspected in Finland were born in 1994 and were previously punished. It is remarkable and unusual that one goes from zero to one hundred in their crime, she says.

More similarities she mentions after listening to the Finnish police press conference are that the police were very quickly at both schools and confronted by the suspected perpetrator in the corridors of the schools.

- The offender in Trollhättan did not drop the sword on the call of the police and it seems that something similar has happened here. This could indicate that the Finnish man had intended suicide by cop. That is, you want to kill but not hold the weapon yourself, says Åsa Erlandsson.

Also Sten-Rune Timmersjö, group commander for serious crimes for the police in Fyrbodal, who was the preliminary investigative leader after the school attack in Trollhättan sees several similarities between the crimes.

- It is clear that we draw parallels with the Crown, since in this case a sword was also used. The difference here is that the suspected perpetrator is still alive so there is a chance to get an answer as to why he did this and maybe we can learn from it, says Sten-Rune Timmersjö.

Åsa Erlandsson believes that the suspected offender in Finland may have been inspired by the school attack in Trollhättan.

- It wouldn't surprise me if they find material from the Trollhättan Council in this man's computer, she says.

What would you say is happening in Finland right now?

- It will be a national trauma when this happens because you cut the basic safety of so many people, says Åsa Erlandsson.

When she wrote the book about the school attack in Trollhättan, she had to hold the murder weapon, in the sword used.

- The perpetrator must cross so many boundaries and dehumanize those who are attacked in order to use such a terrifying weapon.