The 1994 Falun Mass Murder

Early on June 11, 1994, Falun became the site of one of Sweden's most serious modern mass killings. Seven people, all young or middle-aged adults, were killed in several encounters near the Dalregementet military area and central Falun. Three others survived gunshot wounds. Police stopped and arrested the shooter later that morning.

The victims

Swedish public-service reporting describes the seven people killed as five women associated with the voluntary defense movement, a security guard and a cyclist. Contemporary retrospective reporting places the victims' ages between 20 and 35. This dossier does not reduce them to a body count: each was an uninvolved person encountered during a brief sequence of violence that permanently affected families and the city.

Three additional people were wounded but survived. The criminal judgment therefore addressed both completed murders and attempted murders.

The shooting and arrest

Mattias Flink was a 24-year-old Army officer serving in Falun. Swedish public-service accounts state that he had been drinking heavily and, after an earlier conflict in his personal life, obtained an AK 5 service rifle. During the early-morning sequence he fired more than 50 rounds in and around Falun.

Police located him later that morning. An officer shot and wounded Flink during the confrontation, after which he was taken into custody. The prosecution that followed did not depend on an unresolved identification question: Flink's responsibility for the shootings was established in court.

Mental state and criminal responsibility

The case generated difficult legal questions because Flink was described as being in a psychotic state while heavily intoxicated. Swedish courts nevertheless concluded that the legal threshold for a serious mental disorder requiring psychiatric disposition was not met in a way that prevented a prison sentence. That distinction is important: a description of psychosis in the factual record is not the same as a finding that he lacked criminal responsibility.

Convictions and sentence

Flink was convicted of seven murders and three attempted murders. The first-instance court imposed a fixed prison term, but the appellate courts increased the punishment. The Swedish Supreme Court ultimately imposed life imprisonment.

Years later, after Sweden created a process through which life prisoners could seek conversion to a fixed term, Flink applied to have his sentence determined. On December 20, 2011, the Supreme Court fixed the sentence at 30 years. The decision reflected both the extraordinary seriousness of seven murders and assessments of his conduct in prison and risk of reoffending.

Conditional release in 2014

Under the applicable Swedish rules for conditional release, the 30-year term allowed release after two thirds had been served. Flink was released on June 11, 2014, exactly twenty years after the killings. Swedish Radio and SVT both documented criticism from victims' relatives about the coincidence of the date.

Release did not change the convictions. The case remains fully adjudicated: seven murder convictions and three attempted-murder convictions stand, while the later proceedings concerned the duration and execution of the sentence rather than guilt.

Timeline

1. June 11, 1994
   Seven people are killed in Falun

   Seven victims are killed and three others wounded during a series of shootings near the military area and central Falun.

2. June 11, 1994
   Police apprehend the shooter

   Flink is located, wounded by police during the confrontation and arrested.

3. 1994–1995
   Courts adjudicate the killings

   Flink is convicted of seven murders and three attempted murders. The sentence is increased on appeal, with the Supreme Court ultimately imposing life imprisonment.

4. December 20, 2011
   Life term converted to 30 years

   Sweden's Supreme Court determines a fixed 30-year sentence after review of the life term.

5. June 11, 2014
   Conditional release

   Flink is released after serving the portion of the fixed term required under Swedish conditional-release rules.

Current status

The criminal case is resolved. Mattias Flink's convictions for seven murders and three attempted murders are final. His life sentence was later converted to a 30-year term, and he was conditionally released in 2014. This page is therefore classified as Solved / Final convictions.