New witnesses found in helicopter heist case
Deputy prosecutor-general Kerstin Skarp has decided to re-open the preliminary investigation into the case of Alexander Eriksson, who was found guilty of piloting the chopper in the 2009 helicopter heist.
“This is a very positive development,” Eriksson’s defense lawyer Ragnar von Bentzeen told daily Aftonbladet.
Three years ago, a stolen helicopter landed on the roof of the G4S security firm depot in Västberga in southern Stockholm and three armed men smashed their way into the building through the atrium window on the roof.
The robbers then deployed explosives to blast open a series of doors and make their way in to the depot’s cash reserves.
After 20 to 25 minutes, the men loaded up the helicopter and disappeared.
The first of the men and a section of the loot were deposited in the Draget district in the Norsborg suburb, before a second drop-off was made at Kaananbadet beach in the Bromma area.
The abandoned helicopter was later found in Skavlöten to the north of Stockholm.
Only 56,000 kronor ($7,793) of the reported 39 million kronor ($5.3 million dollars cash stolen by the thieves has since been recovered.
Eriksson denied his involvement in the heist from the very beginning, claiming to have been high on drugs at the time of the robbery but was subsequently found guilty and sentenced to 8 years in prison.
There is footage of Eriksson at 6.50 entering a McDonald’s eatery in Täby, a suburb of Stockholm.
Witness statements claimed to have heard and seen the helicopter around the landing site in Arninge just after 6am on the day of the heist.
But according to Norrtelje Tidning, new evidence suggests that the chopper didn’t touch down on the site until 7am – when the alleged pilot couldn’t have been in the air.
The prosecutor-general has decided to re-open the case and want to call six new witnesses, according to the paper.
“It is fairly unusual for these kinds of cases to be re-opened so there must be something of substance that they have uncovered,” Bentzeen told Aftonbladet.
According to the lawyer, his client is very pleased with the developments.
Prosecutors in Stockholm will now hear the new witnesses and decide if the case should be re-tried.
The Local/rm
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“This is a very positive development,” Eriksson’s defense lawyer Ragnar von Bentzeen told daily Aftonbladet.
Three years ago, a stolen helicopter landed on the roof of the G4S security firm depot in Västberga in southern Stockholm and three armed men smashed their way into the building through the atrium window on the roof.
The robbers then deployed explosives to blast open a series of doors and make their way in to the depot’s cash reserves.
After 20 to 25 minutes, the men loaded up the helicopter and disappeared.
The first of the men and a section of the loot were deposited in the Draget district in the Norsborg suburb, before a second drop-off was made at Kaananbadet beach in the Bromma area.
The abandoned helicopter was later found in Skavlöten to the north of Stockholm.
Only 56,000 kronor ($7,793) of the reported 39 million kronor ($5.3 million dollars cash stolen by the thieves has since been recovered.
Eriksson denied his involvement in the heist from the very beginning, claiming to have been high on drugs at the time of the robbery but was subsequently found guilty and sentenced to 8 years in prison.
There is footage of Eriksson at 6.50 entering a McDonald’s eatery in Täby, a suburb of Stockholm.
Witness statements claimed to have heard and seen the helicopter around the landing site in Arninge just after 6am on the day of the heist.
But according to Norrtelje Tidning, new evidence suggests that the chopper didn’t touch down on the site until 7am – when the alleged pilot couldn’t have been in the air.
The prosecutor-general has decided to re-open the case and want to call six new witnesses, according to the paper.
“It is fairly unusual for these kinds of cases to be re-opened so there must be something of substance that they have uncovered,” Bentzeen told Aftonbladet.
According to the lawyer, his client is very pleased with the developments.
Prosecutors in Stockholm will now hear the new witnesses and decide if the case should be re-tried.
The Local/rm
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