Pregnant woman taken to hospital after clash with Stockholm metro security guards
A pregnant woman was taken to hospital after she was injured in a confrontation with security staff during a ticket check on a Stockholm underground train.
The initial police report, published just after 8pm on Thursday, said a "scuffle reportedly broke out in connection with a woman being dismissed from a train" at the Hötorget metro station. "In connection with this, the woman fell and was taken to hospital by ambulance."
The incident has sparked a debate about racial profiling and security officer violence. Videos published on social media of the incident show the woman, who was pregnant and travelling together with a young child, removed from the train apparently against her will.
"This shouldn't surprise anyone even if the victim is pregnant," wrote Lovette Jallow, an author and activist who founded Black Vogue which creates makeup for people with darker skin tones, on Instagram.
"I've understood that there are many films from mobile cameras that have been posted about this that suggest that the security guards were too forceful," Henrik Palmér, a spokesperson for Stockholm public transport company SL told Swedish public broadcaster SVT.
"Unfortunately, it is difficult to make reasonable judgments in these situations. It gets stressed. Evidently this was not handled correctly the whole way through," he added.
The police will now investigate both the woman and the guards over the incident. She is accused of violently resisting their efforts to remove her from the train, and the guards are accused of gross misconduct or assault, a police officer told the Aftonbladet newspaper.
The two security guards have also been suspended pending an internal investigation by SL.
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The initial police report, published just after 8pm on Thursday, said a "scuffle reportedly broke out in connection with a woman being dismissed from a train" at the Hötorget metro station. "In connection with this, the woman fell and was taken to hospital by ambulance."
The incident has sparked a debate about racial profiling and security officer violence. Videos published on social media of the incident show the woman, who was pregnant and travelling together with a young child, removed from the train apparently against her will.
"This shouldn't surprise anyone even if the victim is pregnant," wrote Lovette Jallow, an author and activist who founded Black Vogue which creates makeup for people with darker skin tones, on Instagram.
"I've understood that there are many films from mobile cameras that have been posted about this that suggest that the security guards were too forceful," Henrik Palmér, a spokesperson for Stockholm public transport company SL told Swedish public broadcaster SVT.
"Unfortunately, it is difficult to make reasonable judgments in these situations. It gets stressed. Evidently this was not handled correctly the whole way through," he added.
The police will now investigate both the woman and the guards over the incident. She is accused of violently resisting their efforts to remove her from the train, and the guards are accused of gross misconduct or assault, a police officer told the Aftonbladet newspaper.
The two security guards have also been suspended pending an internal investigation by SL.
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