Kurt Niklas Lindgren (born June 26, 1972, in Sörmjöle, Umeå Municipality), known in the media prior to his arrest as Hagamannen ("The Haga Man"), is a convicted Swedish serial rapist.
Lindgren was convicted of nine counts of sexual assault in 2006, two of which were labeled attempted murder, in relation to attacks in the city of Umeå from 1998 to 2005.
The nickname "Hagamannen" refers to the area in Umeå named Haga where Lindgren made his first assault.
Later that afternoon police released a media report indicating that they had arrested a suspect in relation to the attacks.
[16] Lingren was described in media reports as a 33-year-old man living just outside Umeå, a Swedish citizen with no criminal record who was now suspected by the police as the alleged perpetrator until January 2006.
He worked at a Volkswagen car sales and repair shop as a sheet-metal worker, and was described as a normal family father with a common-law marriage and two children.
[19] A person suspected of a serious offence and who is awaiting trial is normally held by the Swedish Prison and Probation Service.
The reasoning for incarceration and isolation is that the suspect might resort to further crime, try to influence witnesses, alter his or her own statements or glean information useful for when he or she goes through a psychiatric evaluation.
A photograph of Lindgren was featured side-by-side with a composite sketch released by the police on the cover of the newspaper the day after his arrest.
The Swedish Press Countil will then offer an opinion on whether the publication was in line with good journalistic practice.