1971 Söderhamn courthouse murders
Mass shooting in Sweden / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 1971 Söderhamn courthouse murders (Swedish: Tingshusmorden) was a mass killing in Sweden when a 61-year-old homeowner on 1 March 1971 shot and killed four people during a preliminary hearing in a civil case in the Southeastern Hälsingland courthouse in Söderhamn. The shooting was the epilogue to a five-year-old lawsuit. Homeowner Gunnar Bengtsson had fallen in love with a woman who also moved in with him. The couple got engaged at the end of 1965, but when there was talk of marriage, the woman pulled out. Bengtsson had lent money to the woman without a receipt, as they intended to marry. When Bengtsson began to suspect trouble, he took jewelry as security for the money he lent her. Both the assize court, the court of appeal and the supreme court sentenced him to return the jewelry and pay the woman's legal costs. During the division of property Bengtsson killed the woman, her lawyer, his lawyer and a lawspeaker.