SWEDEN: Swedish police last night arrested the man they suspect may be the murderer of Foreign Minister Anna Lindh.
The man was arrested in the northern Stockholm suburb of Solna. The arrest was made around 9 p.m. Earlier in the evening, a warrant was issued for the man's arrest.
Ms Lindh was stabbed to death last Wednesday in the NK department store in central Stockholm. The man can be held for 12 hours and then a decision will made on whether there is enough evidence to charge him.
Swedish media reported that the man was the so-called NK killer. However, police would not confirm this.
Last Sunday, police released pictures of a man who was photographed in the department store by a surveillance camera three minutes before the murder.
The man fits the description of eye-witnesses. Police have been stressing throughout the week that the man is not accused of murder but they are very interested in speaking to him as he was at the murder scene last Wednesday. The man did not make himself available to police after photographs of him were published in the Swedish and international press three days ago.
The Swedish evening newspaper Aftonbladet reported that the arrested man is a 35-year-old known criminal with a violent past.
According to the TT news agency, the man has a long criminal record including possession of illegal weapons and minor violent crimes.
He has appeared 18 times in Swedish criminal records. The longest prison sentence he has served is eight months for fraud.
Police in Sweden are under enormous pressure to catch Ms Lindh's killer due to a lack of public confidence in their efforts which stem from the failure to find the killer of the former Prime Minister Olof Palme in 1986.
On this occasion, police have had more success, at least in the early stages of the investigation.
Forensic experts have successfully traced DNA strands from a cap discovered near the scene believed to be that of the killer. The murder weapon, a knife, has also been discovered and has been sent to England for further analysis.
The news of the possible breakthrough came as Swedish MP's returned to parliament after the summer recess.
A bunch of flowers lay on the chair Anna Lindh normally occupied.
Speaker of the house, Mr Björn Von Sydow said: "An ice-cold wind blew over Sweden last Thursday. That chill is still with us today."
His comment was followed by a minute's silence. "We miss her but despite the tragic events that have occurred, our memory of her should be a happy one. One could describe her as a star whose shine reached beyond Sweden's borders," said Mr Von Sydow.
Ms Lindh's family has also published letters written in the aftermath of her murder.
Ms Lindh's 12-year-old son David wrote: "I have lost the world's best and most wonderful mother.
"The most important thing for me now is to do what she would have wanted; not to think about revenge but to live a long and happy live with children and grandchildren. I intend to make my mum proud and will do what I can for her. Maybe we'll meet in heaven."