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Hostage "stabbed fugitive in the face"

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Hostage "stabbed fugitive in the face"

The two prisoners who escaped from Mariefred Prison in September were charged on Friday with kidnapping, coercion and illegal possession of weapon and narcotics. Tobias Jardeberg, 28, was serving a life sentence for murder and Åke Martinsson, 35, a two year sentence for drugs offences.

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They escaped from the prison by threatening guards and prison staff with knives. 54 year old Krister Wikman, a warder at the prison, was taken hostage in the process, while the rest of the staff held back, having been instructed not to intervene in such a situation. The two fugitives used a white Volvo that was parked by the prison get away. Inside the car was a shotgun.

After escaping from the fugitives, Wikman told the police that he is "against violence but that he could have been killed if Jardeberg had not been disarmed".

He described how the two runaways, on their way to Hällefors, were becoming more and more stressed, checking the weapon repeatedly. He said he felt they were planning something; either a robbery or to get rid of him.

"Jardeberg threatened to dump me in the forest. I felt that it was either him or me," said Wikman during the police questioning.

According to Aftobladet, the police's investigation revealed how Wikman was able to escape from the two fugitives after being held for 24 hours without food.

After the escape, the two fugitives drove him to a gravel cave outside of Västerås. There, Jardeberg picked up some drugs and then the trip continued to an apartment in Köping, where they got weapons.

The situation worsened for the hostage on the second day, as the fugitives became more aggressive, and Wikman "decided to put an end to it". He took the knife from Martinsson and stabbed Jardeberg in the face.

Aftonbladet reported that "it was not a particularly violent strike" but in the confusion Wikman managed to escape by opening the back door of the car and throwing himself out.

In the fall he lost consciousness. Jardeberg stopped the car and, according to Svenska Dagbladet, was about to shoot Wikman in the leg. But another car approached and he ran away.

Wikman was later found by the police on a road.

The police report stated that it was Jardeberg who planned the escape.

"He knew he had a better chance if someone else came with him," said Aftonbladet. "He forced Martinsson to come along and used an old gambling debt to persuade him."

Jardeberg and Martinsson were caught four days later outside Degeförs. Two other men and a woman are also being charged with aiding the fugitives in their escape.

The men who escaped are not being prosecuted for "escaping from prison" because that is not illegal in Sweden.

Sources: Dagens Nyheter, Svenska Dagbladet, Aftonbladet

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