A seven-month pregnant woman has reportedly been murdered by her boyfriend in a suspected honor killing in Sweden.
Saga Forsgren Elneborg, 20, was strangled with a lamp cord in her flat in the Swedish city of Örebro, according to local media.
Prosecutors allege that her boyfriend, Mohamedamin Abdirisek Ibrahim, a refugee from Somalia who now has Swedish nationality, murdered his girlfriend in an “context of honour” in April last year.
Saga’s family said through their lawyer that it had been a “long and painful wait” until Ibrahim was charged with Saga’s murder a week ago.
Police released photos of the suspected murder weapon and crime scene in her bedroom, where Saga’s body was found next to her bed, reportedly buried under a marble table top.
The 22-year-old father of Saga’s unborn son allegedly hid their two-year relationship from his family because his mother wouldn’t accept him “meeting white girls,” according to a criminal complaint filed last week.
The accuser said he grew up believing that dating a “white” woman is “not okay” and that he “must date a woman of the same culture” or he would be shunned – but his family reportedly never of Saga conscience.
Saga Forsgren Elneborg (pictured), 20, was strangled with a lamp cord in her flat in the Swedish city of Örebro – allegedly by her boyfriend, Mohamedamin Abdirisek Ibrahim, local media report
A handout photo released by local police is believed to depict Mohamedamin Abdirisek Ibrahim. The man in the photo appears to be 6 feet tall
This is the lamp found at the crime scene. Saga was strangled, allegedly with the black cord of this bedside lamp
Police released photos of the murder weapon and crime scene in her bedroom, where Saga’s body was found next to her bed (yellow), reportedly buried under a marble table top (center, on the bed). On the left you see the base of the table and on the right a charging cable for the phone
Saga’s family (pictured) said through their lawyer that it had been a ‘long and painful wait’ until Ibrahim was charged with Saga’s murder a week ago
Text messages between Saga and Ibrahim show that he planned to tell his relatives about their relationship and baby on April 28, 2023, the night of Saga’s murder.
He expressed that he was nervous about telling them, writing, “I feel like I can feel my heartbeat almost to my stomach.”
Saga tried to reassure him, promising that “it will be okay.” In his last text message to his girlfriend, Ibrahim claimed he had told one person. Saga’s follow-up messages asking how things were going and if he wanted to “talk to me” went unanswered.
Public prosecutor Elisabeth Anderson alleges that Ibrahim then went to Saga’s flat, where he “forcibly” strangled her with the cable of her bedside lamp, according to a local newspaper. Aftonbladet.
Their son, who weighed 1.7 kg at the time and was only 4.5 meters tall from head to toe, also died in Saga’s womb.
According to local media, there is no indication that Ibrahim’s family was involved in Saga’s murder or that they requested her death.
Further text messages between the Saga and her alleged killer revealed that Ibrahim tried to convince his girlfriend to have an abortion shortly after she became pregnant.
Text messages between Saga (pictured) and Ibrahim show that he planned to tell his relatives about their relationship and baby on April 28, 2023, the night of Saga’s murder
Further text messages between Saga and her alleged killer revealed that Ibrahim tried to convince his girlfriend to have an abortion shortly after she became pregnant, but Saga (pictured) wanted to have the child and was excited about motherhood.
A collage of photos shows Saga during her pregnancy, lovingly holding her baby bump
“I know we can make it, but I won’t be able to keep my family. If it had been possible, there would have been no problem keeping the child,” he told her.
But Saga was excited to become a mother and told him she would have the baby even without her boyfriend’s support, Anderson said.
Despite her refusal to have the abortion he requested, Ibrahim continued the relationship and made plans for a future with Saga.
Anderson claims that Ibrahim did not believe his family would live “honorably” if he had the baby with his girlfriend, but hid this from his girlfriend so as not to make her feel guilty and to “not force her to take the baby away.” .
The prosecution also claims that Ibrahim’s DNA was found under Saga’s fingernails.
In a photo from the crime scene in Saga’s bedroom, a crib sits right next to her bed, ready for the arrival of her son.
“It was and still is a difficult time for all of Saga’s family members,” said Elisabeth Massi Fritz, who represents Saga’s family.
“The murder of Saga is a cruel and ruthless murder with an honor motive. There are many aggravating circumstances in the act that we will highlight during the trial,” Massi Fritz told Aftonbladet.
Ibrahim is due to stand trial for the murder on April 10, almost a year after his girlfriend Saga was murdered.
He denies all allegations and told police during an interrogation that he loved Saga and was still in disbelief over her death: “I’ve been in denial for nine months now.”