The live hand grenade that police detonated on May 1 in central Malmö lay out in the open for several hours on one of the city’s busiest streets. According to police reports, a bus had driven over the grenade, and a private individual is also said to have moved it from the roadway—without it detonating.

The alarm was raised at midday on May 1 after a suspicious object was discovered near a bus lane. However, even before police arrived, several people had already come into contact with the grenade. Among other things, a private citizen reportedly moved it from one side of the street to the other to prevent it from being run over.

Later information shows that the grenade had been unsecured at the scene for an extended period—reportedly several hours. Surveillance cameras are said to have captured a woman throwing the object at a business premises. When it did not explode, she left the scene, but returned shortly afterward without touching the grenade again.

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After that, it remained on the street. According to reports, several people physically handled the grenade—someone is said to have even picked it up—before it was eventually kicked away and ended up on the roadway. There, a bus later ran over it without it detonating.

“It was pure luck that there wasn’t an explosion. It could have ended in disaster,” a police officer told Sydsvenskan.

The bomb squad was called to the scene and carried out a controlled detonation of the grenade. No one was injured in connection with the incident. Police nevertheless emphasize the seriousness of the situation and issue a clear warning to the public not to touch hand grenades found on the streets.

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