Pedophilia | A small Swedish community in the middle of a scandal – Children’s favorite babysitter took advantage of children for years

From the beginning of the week In the municipality of Ljusdal in central Sweden, the police contacted the parents of nine girls. A man who worked at a preschool had sexually abused their daughters between 2018 and 2024 and filmed the acts.

The father of one of the victims has told for Aftonbladetthat in the pictures the parents went through, the daughter was only three years old and is presumably lying on the nursing table in the picture. The father says that the news knocked the air out of him, and he has no words to describe what he thinks about the perpetrator. He tries to focus on the fact that, according to him, his daughter does not seem to remember or understand what has happened.

“He has never spoken about it and we have not brought it up. He seems fine and we don’t want to make him feel bad.”

In the investigation launched into the suspicion of child pornography, it was found that the material found on the suspect’s computer had been filmed in the municipality’s preschools, and all the children appearing in the images have been identified.

The police who went to search the house and seize the computer in the summer did not yet suspect the man of sexual abuse, but of an internet crime related to child pornography.

The suspect was found dead shortly after the house was searched, and no charges can be brought against him.

Already in 2023, the police received a tip from a US website about a Swedish IP address that linked to child pornographic material. However, the address could not be traced. On Wednesday, the police confirmed that the tip was about Ljusdal’s suspect.

Dagens Nyheter news on Friday, that the municipality of Ljusdal had received reports about the man’s inappropriate behavior. Despite the announcements, no action has been taken. Director of municipal administration Linnéa Van Wagenen according to the report, the reports would have been made by classmates who witnessed sexual harassment. Some of the children’s parents have said that the alarm bells went off because of the man’s inappropriate behavior.

The municipality has not had time to check the accuracy of the latest information.

According to the Swedish media, it has not been possible to rule out that there may be more victims. The man had time to work in childcare since 2012 in four different preschools. The crimes that have now come to light have taken place in two preschools. In addition, the man has worked as a personal assistant.

Ljusdal is a small municipality of about 19,000 inhabitants in central Sweden. Many know the victims, their families or have their own children who attended the same preschools.

Many of the residents also know the perpetrator. The mother of one child says For Expressen that the man was his child’s favorite in preschool and that the parents also liked him. According to Expressen, the mother in question is not the only one with a similar experience.

SVT reported that the man was even nominated for Sweden’s best nanny. He has no previous criminal history. The man described himself as “appreciated by children” and said that “cooperation with parents has always worked well”.

Of the victims families have been offered large-scale crisis assistance. For parents is indicated personal therapists.

The therapists have gone through the material obtained from the police with the parents of the victims and helped the parents deal with what happened with their children. Van Wagenen says that parents’ reactions have varied from anger to aggression to sadness and shock.

Help has also been offered to the municipality’s employees, who have helped to identify the children in the pictures.