Sweden probes online links after school sword attack kills one

Swedish police are investigating whether the 18-year-old man who carried out a sword attack at a high school in Fagersta was connected to online communities that glorify school violence. The attack on Friday resulted in the death of one student and severe injuries to two others before the suspect was apprehended.

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The attacker struck at a school in the central Swedish town of Fagersta, also severely injuring two teenage boys before being arrested by police.

A police source revealed that investigators are examining a TikTok account, posted just 20 minutes before the assault, which featured a picture of a sword. This account, active for a month before being removed, reportedly contained videos referencing two major mass violence incidents in Sweden and the Norwegian far-right extremist Anders Behring Breivik.

One video on the account specifically mentioned a 2015 attack where a swordsman killed three people at a school in Trollhattan. The parents of the 17-year-old girl who died in the Fagersta attack confirmed her death to local newspaper Fagersta-Posten. The image of the sword, according to Dagens Nyheter newspaper, appeared to have been taken in a school restroom.

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The parents of a 17-year-old girl told local newspaper Fagersta-Posten that their daughter was killed in the attack.

Political leaders have postponed campaign speeches following the incident, with elections scheduled for September 13. Police clarified on Saturday that the suspect was not shot, correcting an earlier statement made on Friday. The investigation aims to understand the suspect's motives and any potential radicalization through online platforms.

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Police are investigating whether a TikTok account that posted a picture of a sword 20 minutes before the assault belonged to the suspect.