Who is the real Rakhmat Akilov?
Stockholm terror suspect Rakhmat Akilov had used at least two different identities in Sweden, and public broadcaster SVT reports that several people may have used the name Rakhmat Akilov.
Akilov, 39, earned around 500,000 kronor ($55,200) in 2015 and 2016, according to the Swedish tax agency's record. Around 160,000 kronor was his salary working for a pest control company, while the remaining 340,000 kronor came from a position at hotel chain Scandic Hotels, reports SVT.
“But we can say that it is not the same person who's in the pictures from the attack who worked for us,” Scandic Hotels communications director Heidi Wold, told the Swedish public broadcaster.
After a while the hotel began having suspicions regarding documentation the man had shown at the start of his employment to show he was allowed to work in Sweden. His contract was terminated in January 2017 after he failed to confirm his identity “in a satisfactory manner”, said Wold.
“We have had a conversation with the police. They had the same information you did initially and approached us with the same question. And our answer to them is the same,” she told SVT.
Akilov has also used another name in Sweden. After his request for a residency permit was denied in 2014 he appealed to the migration court, which also rejected it. In those rulings the man has a different name, Rahmantjon Kurbonov, and a different date of birth, newspaper DN has previously reported.
The Uzbek man was on Tuesday remanded in custody on suspicion of terror crimes, which he has admitted, after driving a truck into crowds on a busy shopping street, leaving four people dead.
“The man who is in the courtroom was in the driver's cabin, but names could change,” deputy chief prosecutor Hans Ihrman said at a press conference after Tuesday's remand hearing.
READ ALSO: The latest updates about the Stockholm truck attack
Comments
See Also
Akilov, 39, earned around 500,000 kronor ($55,200) in 2015 and 2016, according to the Swedish tax agency's record. Around 160,000 kronor was his salary working for a pest control company, while the remaining 340,000 kronor came from a position at hotel chain Scandic Hotels, reports SVT.
“But we can say that it is not the same person who's in the pictures from the attack who worked for us,” Scandic Hotels communications director Heidi Wold, told the Swedish public broadcaster.
After a while the hotel began having suspicions regarding documentation the man had shown at the start of his employment to show he was allowed to work in Sweden. His contract was terminated in January 2017 after he failed to confirm his identity “in a satisfactory manner”, said Wold.
“We have had a conversation with the police. They had the same information you did initially and approached us with the same question. And our answer to them is the same,” she told SVT.
Akilov has also used another name in Sweden. After his request for a residency permit was denied in 2014 he appealed to the migration court, which also rejected it. In those rulings the man has a different name, Rahmantjon Kurbonov, and a different date of birth, newspaper DN has previously reported.
The Uzbek man was on Tuesday remanded in custody on suspicion of terror crimes, which he has admitted, after driving a truck into crowds on a busy shopping street, leaving four people dead.
“The man who is in the courtroom was in the driver's cabin, but names could change,” deputy chief prosecutor Hans Ihrman said at a press conference after Tuesday's remand hearing.
READ ALSO: The latest updates about the Stockholm truck attack
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.