The Örebro District Court has detained a 27-year-old Belarusian citizen suspected of illegally filming a protected industrial facility in Karlskoga. This is according to court documents obtained by Reform.news.
The Belarusian man was detained on Sept. 3 near the entrance to the Björkborn industrial area at 10 Nobelkrutsvägen. The detention took place at 2:20 p.m., and four hours later the prosecutor decided to arrest him.
The man is suspected of illegally photographing a protected facility — olovlig avbildning av skyddsobjekt. The prosecution believes the suspicion is supported by a high degree of probability.
The Björkborn industrial area is home to defense and chemical industry companies, including Saab Dynamics, Eurenco Bofors and Nammo Sweden. Their production sites manufacture missiles, ammunition, gunpowder and explosives.
The prosecution filed a request to detain the Belarusian man on Sept. 5. The hearing was held on Sept. 6. The suspect attended in person, and his interests were represented by lawyer Peter Sivenius. An interpreter from Russian was used during the hearing.
The defense said the Belarusian had not intentionally photographed the protected facility. In the lawyer’s view, the case could at most amount to an offense committed through negligence. The defense also argued that detaining the man was a disproportionate measure.
At the hearing, the Belarusian said he had permission to work in EU countries and worked for a Polish transport company. He had Belarusian documents, Lithuanian and Polish residence permits, as well as a Polish driver’s license. However, he does not have a permanent address in Poland.
The prosecution justified the need for detention by citing a risk that the suspect would leave Sweden and evade the proceedings. In particular, the prosecutor pointed out that Belarus does not extradite its citizens.
The court agreed with the prosecution’s arguments and ordered that the man remain in custody. The judge concluded that the risk of flight outweighed the harm caused by restricting his freedom.
In addition, the Swedish police decided to deport the Belarusian with a ban on re-entry. The defense appealed the decision.
On Sept. 7, the lawyer also appealed the detention order to the Göta Court of Appeal. According to the case log, the appellate court has already issued a decision, but its contents are not included in the documents obtained by Reform.news.
The prosecution must bring charges no later than Sept. 18. The man is presumed innocent until convicted.
