Bodom Lake murder trial begins in Espoo

Nils Gustafsson accused of triple-murder 45 years ago

Nils Gustafsson 1962

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The murder trial of Nils Gustafsson, who is accused of killing three of his friends during a camping trip in the summer of 1960 on the shore of Bodom Lake, began at Espoo District Court on Thursday morning with a preparatory hearing.
      The prosecution is calling for a life sentence against Gustafsson, who was 18 years old at the time, on three counts of murder. The prosecution says Gustafsson used knives and blunt instruments to kill the other three - two young women and one man.
      Gustafsson maintains that the killings were the work of an outside assailant, and that although he survived, he had sustained a number of puncture wounds and lacerations himself.
     
The case of the Bodom Lake killings has been perhaps the most infamous murder mystery of recent decades. At the time of the crime, police were unable to prosecute anyone on the basis of available evidence and contemporary investigative techniques.
      In April last year, police remanded Gustafsson for the killings, saying that the re-examination of the evidence using modern techniques points the finger at him.
     
The defence argument is that the killings were the work of one or more outsiders; Gustafsson suffered similar injuries to those sustained by the other three, and because of the injuries, he would have been incapable of killing three people.
      The defence also points to a lack of motive on Gustafsson’s part, and says that some eyewitness reports suggest the existence of an outside killer. The defence interpretation of the DNA evidence is that it does not point to Gustafsson’s guilt.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Bodom murders: suspect Gustafsson´s trial to begin in late July at the earliest (9.6.2005)

Helsingin Sanomat