Many have totally forgotten that the biggest mass murder in Swedens history isn’t Stockholms terror attack made with a truck. Biggest mass murder made by new Swedes happened in 1998. All and all 63 people were killed and 250 injured.
20 years ago on the 29th of October was held a big youth disco in Gothenburg. To social hall kept by Macedonians in Backaplan gathered 370 youths aged between 12-25 years.
Most of them were youths of the Middle-East origin. Only handful of native Swedes tended in this garhering. Party was for dancing and celebrating Halloween.
There were too many people from the get go, the halls size on the second floor was calculated for 150 people. The amount of the people was douple than regulated in that space. There was only one entrance through stair case to the fascility and only one emergency exit. Place was a death trap if fire would break out. Narrow stair case and windows 2 meters high from the floor.
Things started happening at 23.30 when four iranian youths Shoresh Kaveh, Housein Arsani and Meysam Mohammadye all 19 years of age and Mohammad Mohammadamini 21 years old, decided to make a little prank.
Iranian youths blocked the entrance door with a sofa and other furniture and the set the sofa on fire.
First emergency call from the location came at 23.42 and total chaos came through the phone lines. On that call peoples screams was heard. The fire escaleted quickly but at packed house it wasn’t noticed at the begining. Fire had ten minutes time to build up to full blown inferno, after that the hall was full of smoke and flames.
At that time music ended. Total panic took over. Everybody in the place understood that they would burn alive unless they can’t get out. 370 people rushed at the same time to the narrow stair case. Iranians had blocked the fire exit too so it couldn’t be used. Some people fell on stairs and were stampeded by the mass of people. Some of the youth fell on the floor after inhaling smoke. Some made their way out through the windows. The problem with this was that the windows were two meters high from the floor and outside waited 6 meters drop to the pavement
Some of the youth went hiding to different kind of closets. They were found dead. All and all 63 youths were killed. 60 of them at the scene of fire. 250 was injured. At least 200 were severly injured with different degrees of burns. Many had life long injuries, which makes life difficult still at the present time.
What makes circumstance interesting is that police officials and fire men were beaten at the scene by victims relatives. Same matter came to light in the court and some thought the reason for this kind of behaviour was that rescue personel didn’t help enough.
Some first aid rescue workers were beaten up at the location. Social board gave explanation at the time that ”immigrant youths back ground and mistrust to the officials” was the reason for this kind of behaviour.
Massive police operation started after the fire. It was obvious from the beginning that fire was set on purpose. Over 1000 police officials held interrogations. At first it looked like the offenders would’t get caught. After a year police arrested four young men.
Shoresh Kaveh
Housein Arsani
Meysam Mohammadyeh
Mohammad Mohammadamini
In the court the motives for the fire didn’t came fully known, but some sort of facts were revealed. Group of four set the fire in anger for the reason that they weren’t let in the disco. Simply a revenge. One said that his honor was offended with 40 crowns fee of entrance.
Court confirmed the sentence and said that the fire was set on together by this foursome.
Mohammadamini got 8 years, Kaveh and Mohammadyeh got 6 years and Arsani got 3,5 years imprisonment. For the reason that he was under aged at time of deed.
Today first three have new identities. Mohammadamini sits in jail for other offences.
It is known that Kaveh have continued burning business after the disco inferno. He has haunted some little restaurant and have tried to arson it couple of times.
After suspects were caught and their names were revealed, many migrant gangs promised bounty for the quartet. All the suspects were given in the penitentiary own special unit cells, but at least two of them were beaten inside the prison.
Everybody knows Breivik, but very few know these iranians after 20 years who murdered 63 people by burning and injured 200 people.
One of the significant attribute of the matter is the way how media has handled this case.
When suspects names came to known in public in the early 2000’s, media has hidden the suspects names after it. If one name has been accidentally published, the articles of this sort are deleted.
If you now start to inspect this matter, you don’t get the full story and how it happened.
On this commemoration day not a single media outlet have told names or backgrounds of these perpetrators. Pretty significant: Murdered 63 people by burning and in the news they are mentioned as ”name changed”
-Juhani Berg
