Sweden isn’t typically known for homicides or considered a dangerous place to live. So when a murder occurs, you can almost guarantee it’s going to get much publicity. For instance, take the strange case of Agneta and Ingemar Westlund, a couple who lived in the village of Loftahammar in Sweden. One day in September 2008, Agneta took her dog for a walk in the woods as she normally did. Unfortunately, she never returned. Afterward, Ingemar went out to find his wife. He found her battered body in the woods. 
Ingemar called the authorities and led them to his wife’s body. In any homicide case, authorities usually try to clear the victim’s significant other first. Swedish police wondered who had a reason to kill Agneta Westlund? They didn’t think it likely a crazed killer lurked in the woods waiting for a victim. Authorities immediately suspected Ingemar.
They arrested and charged Ingemar with murdering his wife. He denied the charges and proclaimed his innocence. He spent ten days in jail before being released. Although he left jail, he remained a suspect for six months. Ingemar soon became an outcast in his community. No one wanted to associate with a man suspected of killing his wife.
The police eventually dropped all charges against Ingemar. However, the police neglected to tell Ingemar they had cleared him of killing his wife. If Ingemar didn’t kill his wife, then who did? The answer surprised everyone. Authorities blamed Agneta Westlund’s death on a drunken elk.
After Agneta’s body was recovered, authorities noticed fur on the body. Authorities incorrectly assumed it belonged to a dog. After studying Agneta’s wounds and doing genetic testing on recovered fur and saliva, authorities determined the genetic evidence belonged to a European Elk or what we Americans often call a moose. This enormous creature is common in Sweden. It’s not unusual for them to weigh in around 800 pounds. Although this creature typically avoids confrontations with humans, they have harmed people in the past.
Authorities believe that while walking her dog, Agneta Westlund came upon an elk eating fermented apples. After the elk ate the apples, it affected the creature similar to how alcohol affects a human. Most likely, the dog approached the drunken elk and antagonized it. The elk then attacked and killed Agneta. Unfortunately, Ingemar endured a horrific ordeal. He had told a media source about attending his wife’s funeral with his children. The 300 people who attended the funeral believed Ingemar had killed his wife.
I looked online for additional stories about drunken elks. One story involved a group of elks that gorged themselves on fermented apples. The elk then congregated around a senior citizen home. Authorities arrived to drive the creatures away. After police dogs didn’t intimidate the elk, hunters with guns arrived to scare away the enormous creatures.
After authorities exonerated Ingemar, he sued them for falsely accusing him of murder and then locking him up. Goran Ericsson, a university animal expert, said it’s easy to understand how police could mistake Agneta’s death for a homicide. Ericsson said it’s rare for an Elk to kill a person. Therefore, the police would assume another person killed Agneta. I remember reading about this story a few years ago. So what would have happened if this death would have occurred before technological advances in genetic testing? For instance, what if this would have happened in 1908 instead of 2008? I shudder to even think about it because a jury probably wouldn’t have believed an elk had killed Agneta Westlund. As for the killer drunken moose? Unless a wolf or a hunter has already killed it, then it’s still at large.
Marc is a longtime resident of Clermont County and an avid reader. Contact him through his website at www.themarcabe.com or through Facebook: www.Facebook.com/themarcabe or his Twitter account @themarcabe. Marc also has a podcast called Catch my Killer where he interviews family members seeking justice for their murdered loved ones. You can listen at www.catchmykiller.com.