A woman was allegedly raped by a fellow patient on a psychiatric closed ward at Sundsvall Hospital on Monday afternoon. The suspect, a man in his 30s, was arrested on site and detained by court on Thursday. Region Västernorrland confirms the serious incident and plans an internal investigation.
The incident occurred on Monday afternoon on a psychiatric closed ward at Sundsvall Hospital in Region Västernorrland. According to police, a woman was raped by a fellow patient, a man in his 30s. No one witnessed the assault itself, but the woman later told another person who alerted the police. The man was arrested immediately on the ward and detained by court later on Thursday, reports TV4 Nyheterna, which was first to publish news of the event. The suspect denies the crime, his lawyer states according to TV4. Tomas Almroth, acting head of psychiatry, confirms to SVT Västernorrland: 'I can confirm that a suspected rape occurred on a closed ward on Monday.' Region Västernorrland describes the event as a serious incident on one of its psychiatric wards in Sundsvall. The mood on the clinic is subdued after the event, and Almroth declines further comment to avoid disturbing the police investigation. An internal investigation will be conducted to examine any system shortcomings and ways to prevent similar incidents in the future, he says. Both the victim and the suspect were patients on the ward at the time of the incident.
