"Swedes are shocked by subway thief" Associated Press, September 14, 2012
STOCKHOLM — A drunk, middle-aged man falls off a subway platform and is knocked unconscious as his head hits the tracks.
A bystander who witnessed the accident jumps down after him — but not for a daring rescue before the train arrives.
Instead, the witness steals the man’s valuables, climbs back on the platform, and leaves his victim to be hit by a train.
The man — who was on his way home from a party — survived, but was
seriously injured and doctors had to amputate half his left foot,
Sweden’s TV3 channel reported.
Swedish police now hope that surveillance camera footage of the
disturbing incident at a Stockholm subway station early Sunday will help
them find and arrest the unscrupulous thief.
Police said Thursday they have received several tips after the video
was shown on television this week on Sweden’s equivalent to ‘‘America’s
Most Wanted.’’
It was also shown by several other TV stations.
The thief had short, dark hair and was wearing a blue jacket and dark
pants. He was described as being between 35 and 40 years old and about
5-foot-9.
He calmly walked out of the subway station, waving to the ticket vendor, as a train ran over the victim on the tracks below.
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Also see: Swedish doctors claim pioneering uterus transplant
"Swedish Christmas goat engulfed in flames — again" AP, December 15, 2012
STOCKHOLM— Not even a layer of ice was enough to keep three people from torching the straw goat in a Swedish town where the annual challenge of burning it to the ground has become an odd Christmas tradition for vandals.
The 43-foot high and 3.6 ton straw goat in the Swedish town of Gavle, meant to symbolize the seasonal spirit, was destroyed Thursday after the assailants crossed the fence surrounding it and set it on fire.
Over the years, the goat has been burned down 26 times.
‘‘Three guys snuck up to it and injected something into its leg and torched it,’’ said Eje Berglund, who chairs the committee in charge of setting it up.
The straw goat is a centuries-old Scandinavian Yule symbol that preceded Santa Claus as the bringer of gifts to Swedish homes. Many Swedes place a small straw goat underneath their Christmas trees, or hang miniature versions on the branches.
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