The Norrmalmstorg robbery was a bank robbery and hostage crisis best known as the origin of the term Stockholm syndrome. It occurred at the Norrmalmstorg square in Stockholm, Sweden in August 1973, and was the first criminal event in Sweden covered by live television. Jan-Erik Olsson was a convicted criminal who had disappeared while on furlough from prison; who then held up a bank and took four hostages. During the ensuing negotiations, the Swedish Attorney General, Lennart Geijer allowed Olsson's former cellmate and friend Clark Olofsson to be brought from prison to the bank. Olofsson was himself a long time career criminal, but it's doubtful he was in league with Olsson. Famously, the hostages then bonded with their captors and acted to protect them despite their repeated threats to kill them all. Police finally mounted a tear gas attack five days into the crisis, and the robbers surrendered. Olsson was sentenced to 10 years for the robbery, while Olofsson was ultimately acquitted. The paradoxical actions of the hostages led to a great deal of academic and public interest in the case, including a 2003 Swedish television film and a 2018 Canadian film.
Events
was on leave from prison on 23 August 1973 when he went into Kreditbanken at Norrmalmstorg, Stockholm and attempted to rob it. Swedish police were called in immediately; one of them went inside and Olsson opened fire, injuring the hand of police officer Ingemar Warpefeldt. He ordered the other officer to sit in a chair and "sing something", so the officer started singing "Lonesome Cowboy". Olsson then took four people as hostages. He demanded that his friend Clark Olofsson be brought there, along with three million Swedish kronor, two guns, bulletproof vests, helmets, and a fast car. He was a repeat offender who had committed several armed robberies and acts of violence, the first at age 16. The government gave permission for Olofsson to be brought as a communication link with the police negotiators. Hostage Kristin Enmark said that she felt safe with Olsson and Olofsson, but she feared that the police might escalate the situation by using violent methods. Olsson and Olofsson barricaded the inner main vault in which they kept the hostages. Negotiators agreed that they could have a car to escape, but would not allow them to take hostages with them if they tried to leave. Olsson called Prime MinisterOlof Palme and said that he would kill the hostages, backing up his threat by grabbing one in a stranglehold; she was heard screaming as he hung up. The next day, hostage Kristin Enmark called the Prime Minister and said that she was very displeased with his attitude, asking him to let the robbers and the hostages leave. Olofsson walked around the vault singing Roberta Flack's "Killing Me Softly". On August 26, the police drilled a hole into the main vault from the apartment above and took a widely circulated photograph of the hostages with Olofsson. Olofsson also fired his weapon into the hole on two occasions, wounding a police officer in the hand and face. Olsson fired his weapon and threatened to kill the hostages if any gas attack was attempted. On August 28, police used tear gas nevertheless, and Olsson and Olofsson surrendered after an hour. None of the hostages sustained permanent injuries.
After the robbery
Both Olsson and Olofsson were charged, convicted, and sentenced to extended prison terms for the robbery; Olofsson, however, claimed that he did not help Olsson and was only trying to save the hostages by keeping the situation calm. At the court of appeal, Olofsson's convictions were quashed. He later met hostage Kristin Enmark several times, their families becoming friends. He later committed further crimes. Olsson was sentenced to 10 years in prison. He received many admiring letters from women who found him attractive. Following his release, he is alleged to have committed further crimes. After having been on the run from Swedish authorities for ten years for alleged financial crimes, he turned himself in to police in 2006—only to be told that the charges were no longer being actively pursued. The hostages sympathized with their captors, which has led to academic interest in the matter. The Swedish term Norrmalmstorgssyndromet was coined by criminologistNils Bejerot. The hostages, although threatened by Olsson, never became violent toward the police or each other. In 1996, Jan-Erik Olsson moved to northeastern Thailand with his Thai wife and son, and moved back to Sweden in 2013. Olsson's autobiographyStockholms-syndromet was published in Sweden in 2009.
Popular culture
The 2003 television film , directed by Håkan Lindhé, is loosely based on the events. A fictionalized version of the robbery is told in Stockholm, a 2018 film directed by Robert Budreau. The podcast Criminal spoke with Clark Olofsson about the Norrmalmstorg robbery in their episode "Hostage."
