An eight-year-old boy named Tintin, who had been part of a bitter custody dispute between his parents, was found dead in his father’s apartment in Luleå on January 8. The boy’s mother had been trying to keep her son away from his father, whom Tintin had accused of subjecting him to psychological violence. During the trial against the 46-year-old man, Tintin’s mother talked about the day her son was found dead. She narrated that her son was nervous and tense before the weekend, but the socializing on Saturday went well, and Tintin went out with his father to a toy store and had lunch outside. On Sunday, the father arrived by taxi to pick up his son, who the mother realized was missing after going to collect Tintin at 2 p.m. When the police arrived, they found both Tintin and his father lifeless in the bathroom, with Tintin dying from strangulation of the neck. The prosecutor alleges that the murder of Tintin was the result of careful planning, as evidenced by a handwritten letter found in the cleaning cupboard in the man’s apartment intended for his parents and brother. During the questioning, the father, Marcus Lodin, admitted to the crime he was suspected of committing and apologised for his act, stating that he killed his son to free him from information hunting by social services and family members. The trial will continue later.
On January 8 this year, an eight-year-old boy was found dead in his father’s apartment in Luleå. The eight-year-old who was called Tintin had been the focus of an infected custody dispute for most of his life. His mother had for a long time tried to keep her son away from his father, the eight-year-old had stated that he was afraid of his father and that he was subjected to psychological violence.
When the trial against the 46-year-old man began in Luleå district court, Tintin’s mother told about the day her son was found dead. On the weekend of January 7-8, the eight-year-old would have two hours of interaction with his father, once on Saturday and once on Sunday. Before that, they had not seen each other since the summer.
In the courtroom, Tintins told mother that he had been nervous and tense before the weekend. The socializing on Saturday had gone well, the boy thought, he and his father had been to a toy store and had lunch outside. Before the meeting on January 8, the mother and son had had a cozy morning and played some games.
On Sunday, the father arrived at 12 o’clock to pick up his son. He arrived by taxi and claimed that his car had broken down. It later emerged that the car had been sold.
When the mother came to collect Tintin at 2 p.m., she quickly noticed that something was not right. The apartment was darkened and there were no footprints outside the door. It snowed a lot that day and she says she thought they either never came to the apartment or that they had been there for a long time.
When neither the son nor the father answered her calls, she contacted the police and social services several times. She was afraid that something had happened to her son. She says that the father had previously tried to get an Iranian passport for the son and that she was afraid that he would take the son out of the country.
Photo: Erik Simander
According to the incident report, the police entered the residence after a few hours and found both Tintin and the father lifeless in the bathroom. There are repeated attempts to revive the eight-year-old, but his life cannot be saved. The 46-year-old man was taken to hospital with serious self-inflicted injuries. According to the coroner’s assessment, Tintin died from strangulation of the neck.
The prosecutor Lindha Strömberg believes that the murder of Tintin was caused by careful planning. During the trial, she refers to a handwritten letter that was found in the cleaning cupboard in the man’s apartment. The letter, intended for his parents and brother, said he killed the eight-year-old to save him. A notepad was found on the kitchen table in the apartment with a checklist that can be linked to the crime. He is said to have also sold large parts of his assets before the murder.
During the questioning of the father, his lawyer Marcus Lodin initially says that his client admits to the crime he is suspected of and that he will submit to responsibility for murder.
Photo: Erik Simander
The 46-year-old man says that he also wanted to end his own life. He says he murdered his son because the eight-year-old needed to be in peace and free from pressure and what he calls information hunting from social services and family members.
He went on to say that he does not think it justifies the murder but that he believes it was his and his son’s salvation.
To questions from the prosecutor regarding the crime, he replies that the analyzes and investigations from, among others, the National Forensic Center speak for themselves and that he has nothing to say about the crime itself.
The trial in the case will continue next week.
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