Five students at Sigtuna School are suspected of serious crimes against several schoolmates, including sexual harassment, assault and illegal coercion.
The young men were arrested late last week, and three of them are in custody. Prosecutor Lisa dos Santos has said, among other things, that the suspected acts appear to have been committed within the so-called "system", where some older students have positions that give them the authority to exercise power and punish younger students.
In parallel with the criminal investigation, the supervisory authority Skolinspektionen has received 22 reports about Sigtunaskolan, just in the last few days.
Almost all have been submitted anonymously.
Several refer to a fear of reprisals, ostracism or losing their employment if it is discovered that they are behind the testimonies and accusations against the school. According to an anonymous guardian, students are expected to "show loyalty to the informal rules and to the students who enforce them."
A teacher tells the School Inspectorate that there is an opinion at Sigtunaskolan that "problems within the boarding school should stay within the business".
In the reports, which DN has read and other media have also reported on, there is serious information about a "systematic oppression" where older students subject younger ones to "physical and psychological abuse". According to a notifier, it is not about single events or resets that have gone off the rails. But about "deeply rooted traditions that have been passed on between cohorts".
The letters also describe a points system where students with the lowest points are particularly vulnerable. A so-called "prefect" can decide that a student should be frozen out for the rest of the semester.
"Other students in the dormitory are then expected to cease all communication and social contact with the designated student," writes a reporter who claims to be the guardian of children at the school.
"It's about organized and long-term isolation."
She also claims that there is "extremely serious" physical and psychological abuse in the boarding schools for boys. There, according to the report, "specially elaborated methods are used to create fear, submission and psychological breakdown in younger students".
The School Inspectorate has classified detailed descriptions of violence and violations that are said to be ongoing. But the informant believes that they pose an "obvious risk of serious bodily harm".
A student who contacted the authority wonders how it is that the system at Sigtunaskolan has existed for so long without anyone stopping it.
"It is important that you talk to the students one by one," writes the student.
Both guardians and staff appeal to the authority to review the operation.
The School Inspectorate is in the process of analyzing the reports but has not yet decided whether they will carry out an inspection following the new findings.
But as recently as July, three months ago, the authority conducted an audit of Sigtunaskolan and found no deficiencies in the security work.
How does that happen?
- I can't answer that. We conducted interviews with staff and students, and then no information of the kind that we are receiving now emerged. Rather, it emerged that the school had preventive work, that there had been violations but that they had been taken care of, says Agnes Gidlund, who is the press officer at the School Inspectorate.
The detained boys deny any crime. So does one of those arrested but released, according to his lawyer. The other boy's lawyer declined to comment.
The head of school at Sigtuna School, Sofia Kinberg, does not want to comment with reference to pre-trial confidentiality.
