The Japan Times - Sweden's 'Queen of Trash' jailed over toxic waste scandal

The five central figures in the case were handed prison sentences ranging from two to six years.

Waste management company Think Pink was found guilty of dumping or burying some 200,000 tonnes of waste from the Stockholm area at 21 sites from 2015 to 2020, with no intention of processing it correctly.

In a 692-page verdict, the Sodertorn district court sentenced Think Pink's former chief executive Bella Nilsson to six years behind bars for 19 counts of "aggravated environmental crime".

Nilsson worked as a stripper and managed a sex club in Stockholm in the 1990s, getting convicted for accounting crimes in 1998.

She wrote a memoire -- "A Stripper's Confession" -- before going on to win a prestigious award in 2018 for entrepreneurship with Think Pink.

The four others received prison sentences ranging from two to four-and-a-half years.

"The group's waste management activities have posed risks -- in certain instances, substantial risks -- to both human health and the environment," judge Niklas Schullerqvist wrote in a statement.

"There is no doubt that environmental offences were committed at the sites where the waste was handled."

Think Pink was hired by municipalities, construction companies, apartment co-operatives and private individuals to dispose of primarily building materials but also electronics, metals, plastics, wood, tyres and toys.

But the firm left the piles of waste unsorted and abandoned, the court heard.

High levels of toxic PCB compounds, lead, mercury, arsenic and other chemicals had been released into the air, soil and water, endangering the health of human, animal and plant life, the court found.

- 'Unexpected' -

Nilsson -- who has now changed her name to Fariba Vancor -- argued during the trial that Think Pink had "followed the law".

During the proceedings, her lawyers rejected the prosecution's claim the company used falsified documents to mislead authorities, saying any wrongdoing was "by mistake".

Her defence team was surprised by Tuesday's verdict.

"It was a little unexpected," lawyer Jan Tibbling told daily Aftonbladet, adding: "Of course we're not happy."

He said he had yet to speak to his client to discuss whether to lodge an appeal.

Nilsson has insisted she is the victim of a plot by business rivals.

A total of 11 people were charged in the case. Only one of the accused was acquitted: an eccentric entrepreneur who starred in a reality show about his over-the-top lifestyle, whom the court concluded had primarily served in a marketing role.

In addition to Nilsson, the convicted included an environmental consultant accused of helping the company pass inspections, a "waste broker", a transport organiser, five landowners, and Nilsson's ex-husband who co-founded the company and at one time served as its chief executive.

The five central figures were ordered to pay 260 million kronor ($27 million) in damages to several municipalities for clean-up and decontamination costs.

One of the biggest claims was from the Botkyrka city council, where two Think Pink waste piles burnt for months in 2020 and 2021 after spontaneously combusting. One was near two nature reserves.

The Kagghamra site, buried under sand to extinguish the fire, has only recently stopped burning.

The trial opened in September 2024 after an investigation lasting several years and comprising more than 45,000 pages.

K.Abe--JT