Women in a town in northern Sweden have been warned not to walk alone at night in the wake of a spike in violent assaults and attempted rapes. Police in Östersund made the unusual move to ask women not to go out unaccompanied after dark, after reports of six brutal attacks by 'men of foreign appearance' in just over two weeks.
Speaking at a press conference on Monday, police said they 'have never seen anything like it in Östersund', a small town in the north of Sweden with a population of just 45,000. It is extremely unusual for Swedish authorities to make such warnings, and it has not been well received in Sweden, a country proud of its progress in gender equality and women's rights.
All incidents have taken place in Östersund since the 20th of February, and involved outdoor attacks where the perpetrators have been unknown to their female victims. A police spokesperson added that in addition to the increased frequency, the attacks are also conspicuous as - despite being carried out late at night - none of the perpetrators were drunk.
'The cases of the sexual harassment and attempted rapes have involved groups of up to three people,' regional police chief Stephen Jerand told Sveriges Television.
'What stands out is also that none of these perpetrators have been under the influence,' he adds.
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