Kongsberg target taken over by the health service-NRK Norway-Overview of news from different parts of the country
The killings at Kongsberg on Wednesday this week have shaken Norway. Five people were killed, three were injured. Espen Andersen Bråthen was remanded in custody for four weeks on Friday, charged with the murders. The 37-year-old used a bow and arrow during the attack.
Police held a Friday afternoon and press update on the investigation.
The accused man has explained himself in several interrogations with the police. Omholt says the police have gone out of their way to map the man’s motive. Omholt mentions “anger, revenge, impulse, jihad, illness and provocation” as key words for these assessments.
– The hypothesis that has been strengthened most on the basis of the first day of investigation is illness, says Omholt, who points out that these are assessments that can change continuously.
The police have told NRK that there is nothing in the investigation that indicates that the accused Espen Andersen Bråthen had planned Wednesday’s murder.
– The hypothesis that has been strengthened is that he has thought these thoughts in advance (before the attack), but not a challenge. But this is a hypothesis, not the conclusion, says Omholt on Friday.
– The accused has admitted the actual circumstances, but he has not admitted criminal guilt. It is more about the subjective when it comes to health. It will be investigated whether he is sane, says Omholt.
He later formulates this which cannot be asked to the question of criminal guilt.
The 37-year-old has previously been described as a convert. Do not wish to comment on what has emerged in the investigation into this.
– Too early to draw conclusions
Police Inspector Per Thomas Omholt began by agreeing that not everything the police can not answer, even though the need for information is great. Omholt showed, among other things, that there are still interrogations of witnesses, and that these should not be influenced by “what they read in the newspaper”.
On Thursday, NRK wrote that the first patrol on the spot could not arrest the 37-year-old, because the police officers were not wearing protective equipment. It is previously known that the police believe all five victims were killed after the police lost sight of the accused after a confrontation at a grocery store.
Omholt says it is too early to comment on the police’s efforts in the police action.
– Part of the investigation will check what has happened. When you have the whole fact, you can draw conclusions, but it is too early. It is not my job to control the police’s work for action purposes, says Omholt.
Used three weapons
Omholt says the charge against the 37-year-old will be extended to apply to all the offended in the case.
– He is currently charged with five murders. In addition, he has injured three people physically, but many more offended. There are many who were shot after with a bow and arrow and who have felt fear and danger for life. The charge will be expanded, but we must get an overview first, says Omholt.
– The charge does not apply to terrorism so far. This is a question that we consider on an ongoing basis.
The police inspector confirms that the killings have been committed both inside and outside. Police say three weapons have been used, one of which is a bow and arrow.
– We are talking about three weapons. We have stated that a bow and arrow was used, but we do not want to identify the other weapons.
On direct questions, Omholt confirms that the accused should not have used other firearms.
Sitting in a closed health institution
Earlier Friday, it became known that the accused 37-year-old has been transferred to the health service. The reason for this is the man’s health situation. It is previously known that the man’s health condition should be assessed by psychiatrists. The purpose is to find out if he is criminally sane.
– His state of health has promised that he had to go to a health institution. He is not in prison, but in a closed health institution, says Omholt.
She says that it is important for where he will possibly be during the imprisonment period.
Defender Fredrik Neumann would not comment on Friday that Bråthen has been taken over by the health service. Neumann, however, told VG yesterday that it should make a completely prejudiced observation of the accused indicated that “things are not quite in place”.
– Want to know everything he’s done
The police have so far formally questioned more than 50 witnesses. In addition, the police have spoken to many more in surveys, says Omholt. Kripos also receives assistance in analyzing video material that has been collected.
Omholt says part of the ongoing investigation is about gathering information from the crime scenes.
In addition, the police now focus on the past of the accused, and say this will be mapped in full.
– We encourage witnesses who have been in contact with the accused in the years or days before to report to the police. We need to know what he has done in the last ten years.
Browsing the net
As part of the mapping of the accused’s past, a broad mapping of his activity online is also made.
– We examine telephones and the digital space. There is a lot of information that we want to get control of. That means the internet, social media, YouTube and the like, says Omholt.
NRK has previously mentioned that the man in 2017 posted a video on YouTube where he describes himself as a “messenger”. Based on this, a childhood friend contacted the police.
Omholt does not want to comment on any possible policy he has received about the man.
Four weeks custody
Police are still working to identify the five people killed in the attack. Omholt says this has taken time, among other things due to notification of relatives.
– We hope to go out with the names as soon as possible, but we do not get it right now.
Buskerud District Court decided earlier Friday on Espen Andersen Bråthen to be remanded in custody for four weeks, as the police had requested. He has been banned from letters and visits and media bans throughout the period. He must also sit in complete isolation for the first few weeks.
Bråthen has agreed to custody and acknowledged the facts, but thus denies criminal guilt. Today’s imprisonment meeting was held as an office business, because the accused accepted the imprisonment. He was not present at the jail meeting.
The judge writes in his decision that emphasis has been placed on the explanations the man has given in questioning.