What to Know About the Deadly Truck Incident in Stockholm

A truck ploughed into an upscale department store in the capital of Stockholm killing at least four people and wounding 15 others, according to the Stockholm County Council. Sweden’s Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said the incident has all the indications of “a terror attack,” but much about the incident is still unconfirmed. Here’s what we know so far:

What happened?

A stolen beer truck drove into Sweden’s largest pedestrian street, Drottninggatan, in central Stockholm before crashing into the the upscale Åhlens city department store.

Photos and videos on social media showed dozens of people fleeing the scene and plumes of smoke coming from the cab of the truck, which was on fire. “He mowed down eight people there and I saw four bodies a little further away. A woman with a small child became completely paralysed and just stood still. I grabbed her and another woman and threw us all into a stairwell,” an eyewitness told Swedish broadcaster SVT.

The country’s parliament went into lockdown, the area of the incident was cordoned off and the city’s subway lines were closed down soon after the attack.

Who did it?

Swedish authorities say they detained a 39-year-old Uzbekistan-born male in connection with the attack, according to the Associated Press. “There is nothing that tells us that we have the wrong person,” Dan Eliason, head of Sweden’s National Police, said at a news conference Saturday.

The Swedish intelligence agency said authorities had some knowledge of the suspect prior to the attack, the AP reports. “The suspect didn’t appear in our recent files but he earlier has been in our files,” Anders Thornberg, head of the Swedish Security Service, said.

A man who had sustained minor injuries had also been arrested, according to the Swedish daily Aftonbladet, and he reportedly confessed to being involved in the crash.

A Swedish brewing company confirmed that the vehicle used in the incident was one of their trucks. The truck, which is pictured jutting out of the department store, was apparently stolen on Friday morning, while its driver was attempting to unload goods. Police have released a photo of a man they believe may be connected to the attack. He can be seen wearing a green-colored coat with a hood pulled low over his face at the top of an escalator, according to the Associated Press.

Was it a terror attack?

We don’t yet know for sure. It has not been confirmed by the police and there has been no immediate claim on the attack. In a televised press conference, Lofven, the country’s prime minister said: “Sweden has been attacked, this indicates that it is an act of terror.”

Swedish police have reportedly launched a “preliminary investigation into suspected terrorist crimes” after the attack. The AP reports intelligence officials are working to collect data and identify the person or people behind the incident. If confirmed, it will be the first attack on the Scandinavian country since an Iraqi-born Swedish man blew himself up on Stockholm in 2010, killing himself and no one else.

This is a developing story. Please refresh for updates.