A male nurse in his forties has been charged with aggravated rape after allegedly assaulting a female patient who was receiving end-of-life care at a hospital in Jönköping, SVT Nyheter reports. The woman, who was in her seventies, died within hours of the attack, though a forensic pathologist concluded that her death resulted from the illness she was already being treated for. The man has been held in custody since late August.
According to SVT Nyheter, the alleged assault took place late one evening in early August, when a member of staff walked in on the nurse and the patient. The man was at least partly undressed at the time, and DNA and sperm were later found on the woman's body, the broadcaster reports.
Why it matters
The case has shaken a Swedish hospital and raised difficult questions about how patients near the end of their lives are protected, and about how a long-serving employee with a good reputation among colleagues could be accused of such a crime. It also turns on a legal distinction: the prosecution and the defence agree that something happened, but they disagree on how the act should be classified under Swedish law.
The charge is aggravated rape. The man's lawyer has said his client admits the act but wants it treated as aggravated sexual assault instead, according to SVT Nyheter. The difference matters for the sentence he would face if convicted.
The night of the alleged attack and the arrest
After the staff member intervened, the nurse left the hospital by car as police were being called, SVT Nyheter reports. A short time later he crashed into a concrete foundation at the Ekhagsrondellen roundabout in Jönköping and was taken back to the hospital by ambulance.
He was detained on suspicion of aggravated rape some weeks later, and the hospital opened an internal investigation to establish whether other patients might have been exposed to him. The matter was also reported to the Inspectorate for Health and Care (IVO), Sweden's supervisory authority for health and social care.
Prosecutor Frida Noldin, who is handling the case, told SVT Nyheter that the investigation has not produced any information suggesting the suspect committed offences against other patients. The forensic pathologist's assessment was that the woman died as a consequence of the condition she was being treated for, Noldin said.
Colleagues describe a trusted, experienced nurse
The man had worked as a nurse for many years. Colleagues interviewed during the investigation described him as a secure and knowledgeable practitioner with a good reputation, SVT Nyheter reports. He has been questioned on a couple of occasions.
When the detention hearing was held, Noldin set out why she considers the offence aggravated. She said the nurse had shown particular ruthlessness or brutality because the act was carried out while the woman was in end-of-life care, with no way to defend herself, and because he exploited his position as her nurse. SVT Nyheter quoted those remarks at the time.
The trial is scheduled for 28 and 29 October. The evidence expected to be presented consists mainly of interviews with the nurse's colleagues and technical analyses, according to SVT Nyheter.
The court will now weigh the prosecution's case against the defence's position that the act should be classified as aggravated sexual assault rather than aggravated rape.
