A nine-week-old baby had 23 broken bones in its body. According to the forensic pathologist, the child has likely been subjected to repeated violence, but the parents blame a baby carrier, report Sydsvenskan and HD.
In March 2023, a family arrived at a hospital in Skåne with the baby. When it became clear that the baby had 23 fractures, the staff alerted social services, and the child was taken into care and placed in a foster home. The parents were also made suspects.
The child has had extensive injuries, and this has been a very complicated case, says Magdalena Holmberg, senior prosecutor at the Södra Skåne district prosecutor's office, to HD and Sydsvenskan.
The child had fractures in its ribs, upper arms, and hand and foot joints. According to the forensic pathologist, the injuries were caused by "repeated blunt violence", such as "blows, pressure, pulling, and twisting of limbs".
The parents deny any wrongdoing and instead claim that the injuries may have occurred when the baby was carried in a too-tight baby carrier. According to the forensic pathologist, this is unlikely, but it cannot be ruled out. The criminal suspicions against the parents have now been dropped, but the child is still in care.
I cannot prove that the parents are behind the fractures. And if one of the parents did it, I cannot prove who did it in that case. It becomes a difficult situation when the victim cannot testify themselves, says Magdalena Holmberg.
Sydsvenskan and HD have been in contact with the parents' lawyer, who does not wish to comment on the case.
