The 18-year-old arrested on suspicion of murdering a 17-year-old girl and injuring three others with a sword at Brinell School in Fagersta is Liam Carlos Nebel. He was previously convicted of assault in a school setting and, according to legal documents, has a problematic upbringing marked by significant neglect, mental health issues, and foster care placements. Samnytt’s review also reveals how he spent time making a name for himself on social media, where various video clips glorified previous school attacks and mass shootings.

It was at 14:06 on Friday that police and emergency services were alerted to an ongoing lethal violence incident at Brinell School in Fagersta. The police dispatched considerable resources to the school, including regular patrols, the regional Special Operations Task Force, and the National Task Force, who arrived by helicopter.

Just ten minutes later, police were on site and entered the school. The first patrols discovered a 17-year-old girl murdered and three additional persons injured.

Two of the injured were boys aged 12–17, both seriously injured and rushed to hospital for surgery. Another person was lightly wounded and was released from the hospital on Friday.

The 17-year-old girl murdered in the attack is described by friends as a kind and cheerful person with dreams, someone nobody had ever heard anything bad about.

READ ALSO: Police on the sword attack: 1 dead and 3 injured

Brinell School, a high school with just under 500 students, was locked down during the extensive police operation around 2 pm. It was not until about 6 pm that students were allowed to leave the school buildings.

Several other schools and establishments in Fagersta were also locked down, including Risbroskolan, Olympen, Fagerstahallen, Skogsgläntan, Björksta, Prästkragen, and Norrbybacken.

Glorifying Videos from the Attack

Samnytt reports that images from the school show a bloody hallway and a person described as either injured or dead. According to sources, this photo spread in a chat group where it was claimed the person was dead. This has raised questions about whether the perpetrator photographed a victim and then sent the image to someone else in an online environment where violence is glorified.

These online communities are partially within what’s called the TCC, True Crime Community, and circles centered on so-called “rampage videos” – video clips focusing on mass violence attacks and other major violent events. These feature video games, video edits, and discussions or tributes to people who have committed school attacks. In parts of these spaces, content about real violent acts is mixed with highly glorifying and almost fan-like culture around the perpetrators.

A review of the man’s account on the social media platform TikTok, before it was shut down on Friday, revealed a long series of violence-glorifying video clips. There are also other accounts on the platform that have edited content from the original account, which is reportedly connected to the perpetrator, describing the Fagersta swordman as an established editor of this type of material.

These aren’t just any clips but severe violence portrayals and material that romanticizes deadly violence. Among the clips were dance videos with mass murderers.

Examples included content about Anton Lundin Pettersson’s school attack in Trollhättan in 2015, Anders Behring Breivik’s Utøya massacre, Rickard Andersson, who committed the mass shooting at Campus Risbergska in Örebro in 2025, and Fabian Cederholm, who killed two teachers at Malmö Latin School with an axe and knife in 2022.

On TikTok and other parts of the Internet, a culture has emerged where people who commit school and other violence attacks are repeatedly depicted in a glorifying way. In these clips, perpetrators might appear with music, while photos or video footage from the incidents play and information about death and injury counts is highlighted onscreen.

The comments sections concurrently feature tributes and other positive reactions to the material. These are not just isolated posts with a handful of reactions. Some of the clips receive thousands of likes and hundreds of comments. The relevant account, which disappeared from the platform on Friday and was reportedly run by the perpetrator, had thousands of followers.

The suspected perpetrator is Liam Carlos Nebel, 18 years old, a student at Brinellskolan in Fagersta, with a key tag that allowed him entry. He has been detained on suspicion of murder and several counts of attempted murder after police shot him in the leg and overpowered him inside the school. As early as Friday, Riks reported his name.

In connection with the attack at the school, the perpetrator is said to have worn a costume resembling that of Anton Lundin Pettersson during the Trollhättan school attack: black clothing, helmet, and face mask.

Several images circulating online are said to show the equipment used, packed into a guitar case, including photos taken in a school bathroom shortly before the attack.

One of the images reads “No more edits” followed by a sad emoji, reportedly referencing the social media scene where videos with violence-glorifying content are edited and distributed.

The police have conducted searches at two addresses connected to the suspect and report that an extensive information-gathering operation is ongoing to clarify what happened and what preceded the incident. Brinellskolan still remains cordoned off while a forensic investigation is underway.

Neglect in the Home

Liam Carlos Nebel was convicted last year for assault at his former elementary school. According to the verdict, he grabbed a student by the throat and struck their head. The Court of Appeal upheld the verdict at the end of the year, sentencing Nebel to youth care and 25 hours of community service.

The legal documents describe an upbringing with significant neglect, which the assessment indicated could have negatively affected the 18-year-old’s health and development. The records include reports of inadequate access to food, clothing, and even failing to receive prescription glasses he needed.

For several years he reportedly had major difficulties with schooling and did not complete his compulsory education. He previously attended schools in the Sundsvall area where he lived with his father before moving to Fagersta.

The documents also describe conditions at home. The father is said to have forced his son to train martial arts intensely and threatened him with violence. During his childhood, the 18-year-old also witnessed violence at home.

The Administrative Court also referenced information raising suspicions that the father limited contact between the son and his mother. The court further conveyed the assessment that the father may have imparted a negative view of women and a pro-crime attitude to his son.

The legal documents show that the perpetrator had been in need of treatment from child and adolescent psychiatry but had not received such care. There are also indications of a possible underlying neuropsychiatric diagnosis, said to have caused significant challenges for Liam in everyday life.

When the father became seriously ill in autumn 2024, the 18-year-old was placed in a foster family. The following year, autumn 2025, the Administrative Court ruled that the placement would continue under LVU (Care of Young Persons Act). At that time, the court deemed there was a significant risk the 18-year-old would suffer further harm if he returned to his father.

Read excerpts from the verdict of the Administrative Court in Härnösand:

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