Background
Hedin was born in Stora Harrie, near Kävlinge.
Hedin was born in Stora Harrie, near Kävlinge.
The act perpetrated by Hedin, commonly known as Hurvamorden, is infamous for being the worst known act of spree killing in Swedish criminal history. The case remains infamous as well since Hedin, as a police officer, was for an extended period assigned to investigate his own murders. He committed his first crime in September, 1943, when he broke into a local brewery near his parental home to steal some oats.
To avoid detection, he then burned down the brewery to hide his crime.
This was a method he used later to cover his tracks when he committed far more serious crimes. To cover his tracks, he burned down the crime scene.
Being the local police representative, he took part in the investigation and even answered questions from the national media concerning the case. In the summer of 1952, Ulla Östberg, his girlfriend, broke off their engagement.
Infuriated, Hedin assaulted her with handcuffs, and threatened to kill her with his pistol.
He was subsequently fired for this incident, along with reportedly stealing towels from the local hospital. Thirty minutes later he arrived at the retirement home in Hurva, where his ex-girlfriend worked and lived. He climbed a fire escape and entered the room where Östberg usually slept.
This night however, she was not sleeping there, but in the room of Agnes Lundin, the matron.
He discovered this, entered the room and killed them both with an axe. After killing Östberg and Lundin, he blocked the entrance to the retirement home and set it on fire.
Four elderly people died in the flames, with a fifth dying some days later from severe burns. lieutenant is unclear at what point he decided to take his own life.
The police had realised by now that Hedin was behind the killings and had started a manhunt.
They found his car parked near a cabin by a lake. In the front seat was a suicide note, his jacket and his wallet. The suicide note contained a full confession of all crimes he committed.
He claimed he was only good at one thing, tracking other criminals.
Somewhat later his weighted-down body was found in Brösarp lake near Skåne County, where he had drowned himself. Hedin"s corpse was transported to the Institution of Anatomy at Lund University.
lieutenant was stored at the institution until 1974, when it was cremated. Victims
Bengta Andersson, 86
Elna Andersson, 83
Hulda Hedin, 57, Hedin"s mother
Per Alfred Hedin, 74, Hedin"s father
Nils Larsson, 84
Agnes Lundin, 55
Maria Nilsson, 71
Ulla Östberg, 24
Maria Pettersson.