Swedish police say ‘erroneous narratives’ are spreading online after mass school shooting

Swedish police said on Wednesday “erroneous narratives” were being spread on social media regarding the mass shooting on Tuesday at an adult education centre in the Nordic country's deadliest gun attack.

“We want to be clear that based on investigative and intelligence information at present, there is no information pointing to the culprit acting on ideological motives,” police said on their website.

Police said on Tuesday 11 people died and many were injured in the shooting at the Risbergska school in Orebro, 200km west of Stockholm.

They said the motive for the crime was not immediately known, and they believed the suspected perpetrator, who was among the dead and was not known previously to police, acted alone.

Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson on Tuesday said the attack was the worst mass shooting in Swedish history, calling it a “painful day”, while King Carl XVI Gustav conveyed his condolences.

Sweden has been struggling with  shootings and bombings caused by an endemic gang crime problem that has seen the country of 10-million people record by far the highest per capita rate of gun violence in the EU in recent years.

However, fatal attacks at schools are rare.

Ten people were killed in seven incidents of deadly violence at schools between 2010 and 2022, according to the Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention.

Reuters