Four 'Swedes' Charged Over Knife Robbery in Poland - One Faces 30 Years

GDAŃSK - Four men from the Gothenburg area have been charged over an armed robbery of a Norwegian tourist in Gdańsk, Poland. All four have been held in custody since police tackled them to the floor at the city's airport in May. The oldest of them could face up to 30 years in prison, because Polish prosecutors count an earlier Swedish conviction for a fatal beating.

The men are Swedish citizens living in Angered, a heavily immigrant district in north-eastern Gothenburg. Polish media name the adults as Arran Acib A., 23, Jabril H., 18, and Senal Saned O., 19. The fourth suspect is 17.

The indictment was filed with the court in Gdańsk on 30 September. The trial is set to start on 1 December.

According to the investigation, the four met two Norwegian tourists at a strip club on 7 May, where the groups drank beer together. When the Norwegians left, the Swedes followed them.

On Stągiewna Street in the city centre, one of the tourists was robbed at knifepoint. Prosecutors say the men pushed, pulled and held the Norwegian while a knife was pressed against his body, and that he was threatened with death.

The charges cover an iPhone, around 4,800 Norwegian kroner in cash and a bank card. According to the Polish news site Trojmiasto, the card was then used for several purchases at Żabka convenience stores and for a cash withdrawal.

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Earlier fatal beating in Gothenburg

For three of the defendants, the sentencing range is three to 20 years. For Arran Acib A., now 24 according to Göteborgs-Posten and living in Hjällbo, the maximum is 30 years.

Polish prosecutors treat him as a repeat offender. In Sweden he was sentenced to two years in prison for aggravated assault after a brutal attack at Kaneltorget in Gårdsten in October 2023.

The victim had been targeted after rumours spread on social media that he had harassed young girls. He died of severe brain injuries a week later.

Nobody was convicted of murder. The court could not establish which kicks and punches caused the death, or who delivered them. Arran was convicted of aggravated assault instead - and that sentence is now the basis for the Polish prosecutor's repeat-offender claim.

Arrested before the flight home

The four were arrested on 8 May at Lech Wałęsa Airport, where they were waiting for a flight to Gothenburg. Police had already identified them from surveillance footage.

A tactical unit pinned the men to the floor and handcuffed them. They have now spent about six months in Polish custody.

Two of the three younger defendants have previous drug convictions in Sweden. The third was recently acquitted of an aggravated weapons charge because the court found the evidence insufficient.

All four deny the violent charges. Two of them admit stealing the phone and the bank card. The prosecution's evidence includes surveillance camera footage.