Eleven people have been charged in the so-called Think Pink scandal. The Swedish public prosecutor’s office announced this on Thursday.
It is referred to as the biggest environmental scandal in the country in 50 years, writes SVT.
– This is the biggest environmental crime in Sweden, in terms of scope and organisation, says prosecutor Anders Gustafsson.
Waste company Think Pink is accused of illegally dumping and burying tens of thousands of tonnes of unsorted rubbish. They must have done so at 21 locations in 15 different municipalities in central Sweden.
The police and public prosecutor’s office announce the indictment. From left: Marie Forssten in the police, prosecutor Lise-Lotte Tegler, prosecutor Anders Gustafsson, and prosecutor Linda Schön.
Photo: Claudio Bresciani / TT
The waste should actually be recycled and recovered.
– The company has received large quantities of waste. They have had neither the intention nor the ability to handle this correctly and legally, says Gustafsson.
According to Gustafsson, hazardous and environmentally harmful toxins have leaked from the rubbish heaps.
Gothenburg Post writes that there must be at least 200,000 tonnes of rubbish.
All the defendants deny criminal guilt.
The “trash queen” indicted
One of the defendants is the former top manager of Think Pink, Bella Nilsson.
She has previously referred to herself as the “queen of trash”, or the “trash queen” in good Norwegian.
Nilsson was arrested in 2020 when Swedish police began investigating the company.
Former CEO of Think Pink, Bella Nilsson. Pictured here in a promotional video for the company.
Photo: Screenshot / Youtube
She is known in Sweden as a former stripper and porn club manager. In the 2000s, she was sentenced to prison for accounting violations.
Nilsson was hailed as an entrepreneur after Think Pink’s rapid success in the 2010s. In 2018, she was named “gazelle of the year” by the newspaper Dagens Industri.
Taken with fake ID papers at the airport
Nilsson is charged with serious environmental crime.
It carries a penalty of up to six years in Sweden.
A total of five people have been charged with serious environmental crime. Five others are charged with non-serious environmental crime. One is charged with complicity.
One of the defendants was an environmental adviser in the company. He was arrested with fake ID papers at Arlanda airport when he tried to leave the country, according to the report The evening paper.
The map shows the 15 different municipalities where Think Pink allegedly stored unsorted waste illegally.
Burnt for several months
At three of Think Pink’s rubbish heaps, large fires have occurred in recent years.
First in 2019, when there was a fire in a rubbish heap in Hova in Gullspång municipality. The fire was very difficult to extinguish, writes SVT.
– It cost NOK 7 million, says mayor of Gullspång, Björn Thodenius, to SVT.
In 2020, there was also a fire in a rubbish heap in Kagghamra in the municipality of Botkyrka, which is located south of Stockholm.
The fire lasted for several months, writes The evening paper.
In 2021, there was also a severe fire in a rubbish heap in Kassmyra in the same municipality.
The clean-up after the fires and the illegal rubbish heaps in Botkyrka cost the public around NOK 200 million, according to SVT.
2023-12-28 16:47:51
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