On April 23, 37-year-old Paulus Abdelshahed from Egypt but residing in Södertälje murdered his two children – a son and a daughter in primary school age – by gassing them to death with helium. Before he killed the children, he treated them to a happy meal, cookies, and candy.
The children’s mother, a 40-year-old migrant from Ecuador, made the gruesome discovery when she returned home to the residence on Lergodsstigen in Södertälje in the evening. Paulus was sleeping in bed, dressed in a dress, with the dead children on either side of him. According to reports, Paulus may have intended to suffocate himself to death as well but failed, or perhaps did not dare to complete the suicide.
READ MORE: Egyptian in Södertälje gassed his children to death
Depressed due to gender dysphoria
As a motive for the murders, Paulus cites mental problems with his gender identity and a “severe depressive period” when he stopped living “fully as the woman he feels he is“. He reasoned in police interrogation that if he had been able to live as “Lilly,” he would not have had to kill the children.
The court does not question Paulus’ LGBTQI+-related identity crisis itself. The verdict states that he suffers from so-called gender dysphoria and considers himself to be transgender.
However, this is not accepted as an excuse for the serious criminal acts, and he is sentenced to life imprisonment. The court’s reasoning states that “the acts were preceded by careful planning” and “characterized by particular ruthlessness“.
The court further writes that there were “no mitigating circumstances and no grounds for leniency“. Following a comprehensive forensic psychiatric examination, it is deemed that he does not suffer from such a serious mental disorder that he should be sentenced to care instead of prison: “His actions have not appeared psychotic but instrumental“, the verdict states.
Blood traces inside and outside the residence
Paulus has admitted to the acts and, in interrogation, revealed that he had been contemplating and planning how he and the children would “die together” for some time. The plan included purchasing large gas cylinders with helium, sleep masks, hoses, and tape to manufacture murder weapons.
Blood traces in the apartment and on the terrace outside indicate that the murders were preceded by some form of violence. The police confiscated a knife in Paulus’ possession at the time of the arrest. According to the investigation, the children had bags pulled over their heads and would have died of oxygen deprivation even if they had not been gassed to death.
Prosecutor satisfied – Paulus dissatisfied
Paulus is previously unconvicted and has no history of compulsory psychiatric care or addiction treatment. The prosecutor in the case, Ulrika Rosén, expressed satisfaction with the verdict in a comment to the media.
READ MORE: Father remanded for murdering his two children
However, Paulus, through his lawyer Mikael Westerlund, is dissatisfied and claims that “the answers [to why Paulus gassed his children to death] can be found in the depression he has suffered from“.
He also opposes deportation and requested a statement from the Swedish Migration Agency regarding the safety of transgender individuals in Egypt before the trial.
The Migration Agency acknowledges that it may be difficult to live as a transgender person in Egypt “based on the societal views prevailing in the country“. However, they consider the situation for transgender individuals to be so serious that there are impediments to deportation.
Lied to obtain asylum
Since arriving in Sweden, Paulus has attempted to secure a residence permit with a long list of stories. He succeeded only when he married the mother of the now murdered children.
READ MORE: Egyptian child murderer in Södertälje: I lied to obtain asylum
In previous attempts to stay in Sweden, he claimed to be a Christian and persecuted by angry Muslims in his home country of Egypt, allegedly for impregnating a girl from the family. He later admitted that it was all a fabricated lie.