On August 23, 1973, Jan-Erik Olsson, a convict in probation, broke into the banco Kreditbanken armed with a submachine gun and under the influence of narcotics. His initial plan to steal the bank was frustrated when the police quickly arrived at the place, which led him to take as hostages To three women and one man, employees of the establishment. And then it was born it is called Stockholm Syndrome.
Olsson locked them in the vault and demanded 3 million Swedish crowns (700 thousand dollars for the time) and the release of Clark Olofsson, an acquaintance criminal And his friend. The authorities agreed to this last demand, and Olofsson joined the stage on the same day. What began as an extreme tension situation evolved unexpectedly. during the six days of captivity, the hostages – among them Kristin Enmark, 23 – developed a relationship of trust with Olsson and Olofsson.
The call of one of the kidnapped
EnMark, in a call to the then Swedish prime minister Olof Palme on the second day, said: «I completely trust Clark and the thief. I don’t have them fearthey were very friendly. This behavior baffled the authorities and the public, who expected hostility towards the kidnappers.
On August 28, after drilling the roof and using tear gas, the police He ended the kidnapping. Olsson gave up and the hostages were released without serious injuries. The case resulted in the term “Stockholm Syndrome”, coined by psychiatrist Nils Bejet, who was part of the team of Negotiators. Bejeret described this phenomenon as a defense mechanism in which victims generate empathy towards their captors to survive extreme stress.
However, experts such as Christofoffer Rahm, psychiatrist of Karolinska Institute, clarify that it is not an official diagnosis, but an observable psychological reaction in situations of threatsuch as kidnappings or abusive relationships. “The link reduces stress and helps the victim to accept their reality,” Rahm told AFP.
The book of a hostage
Kristin Enmark, one of the hostages, said in his later book that saw Olofsson as a protector in the face of Olsson’s aggressiveness. “He promised me that nothing would happen to me and I decided to believe him,” he wrote. Despite rumors about a relationship romantic With Olofsson – who was confirmed years later, EnMark emphasized that during kidnapping there was no attraction, but a survival strategy. This perception was reflected in his public defense of the captors, a fact that even led to the hostages to refuse to testify against them in the subsequent trial.
The police deployment was massive: snipers surrounded the bank and the area became an international media focus. Bertil Ericsson, photographer Present at the scene, he described Olofsson as a charismatic man who assumed control of the talks After his arrival.
“He spoke well and calmed the situation,” he told AFP. However, years later, commissioner Eric Rönnegård admitted in a book that the police represented a “real threat” for hostages, which could influence his perception of the Kidnappers as allies in the face of external intervention.
The trial resulted in 10 -year sentences for Olsson and 6 for Olofsson. Surprisingly, some hostages visited their captors in prison, evidencing the depth of the link formed. Cecilia Åse, professor at the University of Stockholmquestions the term from a gender perspective, arguing that the authorities interpreted the actions of the hostagesespecially of Enmark, as an irrational emotional response, ignoring state failures in the protection of victims.
The syndrome who put specialists to discuss
The NorrmalmsTorg event marked a precedent in Modern Criminology and Psychology. Although the “Stockholm Syndrome” remains debated – with detractors that consider it a Urban myth-, His study has allowed better to understand the dynamics of power and survival in extreme situations.
In Sweden, the case presented failures in the police response and generated reflections on citizen security in the 1970s, a period of growing attention to crimes violent. The term has transcended borders, appearing in analysis of kidnappings and abusive relationships globally. (10)
