New police task force after latest Malmö blast
An explosion damaged a convenience store in Malmö in southern Sweden early Tuesday morning, prompting police to form a special task force to look into a string of recent bombings in the city.
"It was a really serious explosion, not simply a firework," Malmö police spokesperson Göran Billberg told The Local.
The blast destroyed parts of the store's entryway and security shutter, but no one was injured.
Witnesses reported seeing a person leaving the area on Sallerupsvägen around the time of the explosion, which took place around 1am and was powerful enough to be heard in many parts of the city.
Police continue to investigate the blast, but have yet to make any arrests.
The store's owner had no explanation as to why the shop was targeted, and it remains unclear whether or not any threats may have been directed against the man.
"We're talking to the owner and the employees as part of an overall survey of the situation," said Billberg.
"There is nothing that has come up yet to indicate this was the work of organised criminals. It was a really small convenience store. It's the first time a story like that has been targeted."
According to Billberg, there have been 25 cases of small explosive devices being detonated in and around Malmö since the start of 2010, include a recent wave that started sometime in March.
Following Tuesday morning's attack, police in Malmö and Skåne County criminal police announced plans to launch a special task force to investigate the incidents.
"We wanted to pool our resources and take things up to a county-wide level to see if there may be any connections to incidents elsewhere in Skåne," said Billberg.
"We hope to go deeper in our analytic work to look at some of the different theories as to why the explosions are taking place."
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"It was a really serious explosion, not simply a firework," Malmö police spokesperson Göran Billberg told The Local.
The blast destroyed parts of the store's entryway and security shutter, but no one was injured.
Witnesses reported seeing a person leaving the area on Sallerupsvägen around the time of the explosion, which took place around 1am and was powerful enough to be heard in many parts of the city.
Police continue to investigate the blast, but have yet to make any arrests.
The store's owner had no explanation as to why the shop was targeted, and it remains unclear whether or not any threats may have been directed against the man.
"We're talking to the owner and the employees as part of an overall survey of the situation," said Billberg.
"There is nothing that has come up yet to indicate this was the work of organised criminals. It was a really small convenience store. It's the first time a story like that has been targeted."
According to Billberg, there have been 25 cases of small explosive devices being detonated in and around Malmö since the start of 2010, include a recent wave that started sometime in March.
Following Tuesday morning's attack, police in Malmö and Skåne County criminal police announced plans to launch a special task force to investigate the incidents.
"We wanted to pool our resources and take things up to a county-wide level to see if there may be any connections to incidents elsewhere in Skåne," said Billberg.
"We hope to go deeper in our analytic work to look at some of the different theories as to why the explosions are taking place."
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