A woman in her 50s and a young woman died in connection with the apartment fire in Alby. Three more people were injured in the fire, which is being investigated as an attack. Reportedly in several media outlets, the women have ties to a person who has links to a gang conflict. When a detention hearing was held in court, the suspect's personal data was kept secret.
"The reason is that there is a danger that the suspect or someone close to them will be subjected to violence or suffer other serious harm, but if the information is disclosed. In the end, it is the district court that decides whether the confidentiality should apply or not, said prosecutor Kajsa Lindberg before the detention hearing.
"Now you're attacking family"
Even with regard to the high-profile fatal shooting in Tullinge, Södertörn District Court followed the prosecutor's line and kept the suspected teenagers' names secret, citing the threat to relatives. A decision that is extremely unusual, says Evin Cetin, former plaintiff's counsel.
"In the past, the perception has been that you have not attacked a family, now we see concrete evidence that you do. Based on that development, I believe that the police and prosecutors must take completely different measures, says Evin Cetin.
"I think it's extremely necessary to use these tools. I think the whole chain of justice needs to do a review of the rules we have.
She believes that the need to protect relatives in some cases may outweigh the transparency that a completely public procedure provides.
"In the latter process, when charges are brought, everything has to be public. Then we have open main hearings and you can take part in the preliminary investigation, although some parts may be under confidentiality. Then review can be done, but not in the initial phase.