The Local Sweden

Knutby: Why a Swedish town notorious for murder is back in the spotlight

Wed, 15 May 2019 18:49:28 +0200

In Sweden, the small town of Knutby became infamous 16 years ago when a local church congregation was linked to an attempted double murder. As three former members of the 'sect-like' congregation face trial unrelated to the previous court case, here are the key things to know about what's known in Sweden as the 'Knutby drama'.

Swedish sect murder case set to feature in HBO documentary

Thu, 11 Jul 2019 13:31:10 +0200

HBO Nordic is reportedly working on a documentary about the Knutby sect murder case, a killing in a small town which gripped the country at the time.

Three members of Knutby sect face charges 15 years after trial that shook a nation

Tue, 14 May 2019 16:36:55 +0200

Three people face charges for assault and sexual exploitation in connection with a parish in the small Swedish town of Knutby that was at the centre of one of the country's best-known murder cases.

Convicted Knutby pastor offered job by church

Fri, 03 Nov 2017 11:20:00 +0100

The pastor sentenced to life in prison for manipulating his family’s former nanny into murdering his wife has been offered a job by a deacon working in the Swedish Church. In a letter accompanying the pastor’s latest application to have his life sentence converted to fixed term, the deacon says he is ready to employ him.

Knutby nanny who killed lover's wife set free

Wed, 14 Dec 2011 14:58:00 +0100

Sara Svensson, the nanny convicted of killing the wife of a pastor with whom she was having an affair, in the village of Knutby, eastern Sweden, in 2004, has been ordered released from institutional psychiatric care.

Knutby pastor: 'We have moved on'

Sun, 11 Jan 2009 13:21:00 +0100

He was a fiendish manipulator. A sex-obsessed evangelical pastor who made his nanny into a murderer. Exactly five years ago this weekend the peace that reigned in Knutby, a small village near Uppsala, was shattered and all hell broke loose.

Knutby sect killing to become movie

Sat, 26 Jan 2008 11:32:00 +0100

The Knutby sect murder in January 2004 is set to become the subject of a movie, but the plans have incurred the wrath of Pentecostalists.

No new probe into Knutby sect murder

Wed, 19 Dec 2007 20:14:00 +0100

Prosecutors in Uppsala have said there will be no new investigation into the Knutby sect murder, despite information handed in by pastor Helge Fossmo, who was convicted in 2004 of inciting his nanny to kill his wife.

Knutby pastor demands new inquiry

Thu, 15 Nov 2007 14:03:00 +0100

The lawyer representing Helge Fossmo, the evangelical pastor convicted of soliciting the murder of his wife and soliciting the attempted murder of his neighbour, has called for his client's case to be reconsidered.

Knutby pastor ready to remarry

Tue, 12 Jun 2007 10:41:00 +0200

Helge Fossmo, the pastor sentenced to life imprisonment for inciting his nanny to murder his wife, is soon to remarry. The pastor and his fiancée have been given the go-ahead for their wedding plans after the tax authorities ruled that there were no impediments to their marriage.

Knutby pastor becomes engaged

Fri, 29 Dec 2006 11:48:00 +0100

Pastor Helge Fossmo, who encouraged his nanny to kill his wife by sending text messages purporting to be from God, has become engaged from his cell in Kumla high-security jail.

Knutby nanny allowed out of clinic

Mon, 18 Dec 2006 12:48:00 +0100

Sara Svensson, the nanny who murdered mother of the children she cared for in the Christian cult community in Knutby, is to be given leave from psychiatric hospital for Christmas, Aftonbladet reports.

Knutby nanny seeks release

Tue, 12 Dec 2006 17:44:00 +0100

In 2004 Sara Svenssson, 'the nanny' in the Knutby courtroom drama, was convicted of murder and attempted murder and sentenced to institutional care.

Knutby sect member in child assault probe

Tue, 03 Oct 2006 16:43:00 +0200

A member of the Knutby religious sect has been arrested on allegations that he assaulted children.

Experts dismiss Knutby pastor's confession

Fri, 01 Sep 2006 21:10:00 +0200

Police in Uppsala are to question the Knutby pastor Helge Fossmo after he admitted on Thursday that he was involved in the murder of his wife and the attempted murder of a neighbour in 2004. But the confession has been lambasted by a professor of psychology.

Knutby pastor admits murder

Thu, 31 Aug 2006 22:10:00 +0200

In an interview with TV4's news programme Nyheterna, Knutby pastor Helge Fossmo has admitted involvement in the murder of his wife in their home in 2004. Fossmo also said that several others were involved in the crime.

Knutby pastor demands European hearing

Wed, 11 Jan 2006 12:25:00 +0100

The former pastor of Knutby, who is serving a life sentence for the murder of his second wife and for the attempted murder of a neighbour in January 2004, is to take his case to the European Court of Human Rights.

Police keep missed targets under wraps

Tue, 30 Aug 2005 12:17:00 +0200

Discuss this article

Knutby spa is "illegal"

Fri, 06 May 2005 16:00:00 +0200

The congregation of Knutby is in trouble again. But while a year ago the village was at the centre of gripping cult-sex-murder scandal, this week it has merely fallen foul of building regulations.

Knutby pastor could lose guardianship of children

Thu, 03 Feb 2005 14:08:00 +0100

Despite having been sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of his second wife in Knutby in January 2004, Pastor Helge Fossmo is still the legal guardian of his three children.