Swedish military feared linked to Estonia ferry disaster

Nomen Nescio nobody at dizum.com
Wed Dec 1 10:20:04 PST 2004


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For those interested in intelligence, munitions smuggling by
authorities and so on - a few words concerning military smuggling of
munitions on the Estonia, feared to have played a part in the sinking
and killings of 852 people on Sept 28, 1994, when the ferry M/S
Estonia sinked during a journey from Estonia to Sweden. It has been
rumoured for a long time that there were some kind of smuggling of
sensitive material taking place on Estonia and that Russian
authorities did not like this, needless to say. The very stressed and
hasty investigation performed by the involved nations also raised
suspicions amongst a lot of people. On top of all this the Swedish
social democratic government did all they could to hinder future
investigations of the wreckage by trying to cover it with stones and
concrete.

First some other related info.

The reader should know that the Swedish social democratic party is
notorious for acting in undemocratic and deceitful manners against
the Swedish people. Two of the most infamous affairs being the "IB
affair" and the "Catalina affair".

In the IB affair it was shown that the social democratic party had
founded a secret and unlawful military intelligence bureau as the
party's own private spy organization to spy on other politcal
adversaries, a Swedish version of Watergate if you will, but it went
far beyond that. Hundreds of thousands of people were targeted during
a number of years. Even Olof Palme himself knew about break-ins that
the intelligence officers performed in other countries embassies in
Stockholm, one of them was Egypt's embassy. One major characteristic
is that the Swedish way of doing things means sweeping things under
the carpet and not letting the public know the truths, this is shown
in every "affair" known in resent years, including the Estonia
disaster. In all of these affairs it's the social democrats that has
been the most responsible party and the party almost in constant
power in Sweden historically speaking.

The magazine breaking the news in 1973 today has a web site about the
affair, http://www.fib.se/IB/

In the Catalina affair it was very recently shown actually, after the
planes was discovered east of the island Gotland in the Baltic Sea,
that they were both indeed gunned down, as had been suspected for
decades. On June 13 1952 the DC3 plane Hugin disappeared and the only
thing found was a trashed rescue raft. Three days later the rescure
plane of type "Catalina" was also gunned down and forced to emergency
landing. It's today also known however that the Swedish (social
democratic) governments have all been maliciously and intentionally
lying all along about the Hugin's purpose to both the Swedish people
as well as the families.

Hugin was in fact gathering intelligence very close (some say on the
wrong side even) of the Russian border and was relaying all this
signal intelligence directly to the Americans. USA was amongst other
things interested in Russias capacity to fight the B-47. This was
well known for the Russians and this was the direct cause of the
attacks in 1952. It is believed that the Swedish FRA, standing for
"Fvrsvarets RadioAnstalt", translating to "The Defence's Radio
Institution", which is Swedens NSA, signed secret treaties with the
US some three years prior to the assult on these planes. The FRA had
5 employees on the Hugin when it was gunned down. It wasn't until
1991 that the families knew what happened, that was when the Russians
admitted a Mig-15 gunned them down.

When the recon plane was found in June 2004 it was situated far east
of the earlier officially declared crash site which further fules the
speculation that Hugin was indeed flying where it shouldn't have
been, conducting its sigint operations and that the Swedish
governments knew this all along. The Hugin was found June 10, 2003.


I'm not sure how much of these affairs is known outside Sweden, but
it's interesting read that's for sure and I just may get back to
these things and others like them later on.


Back to other things now.

This was published today in Sweden, along with a tv show of one hour:

>    INRIKES Publicerad 30 november        
> 
>   "Krigsmateriel fraktades pe Estonia"   
> 
> 
>   Estonia hade veckorna fvre fvrlisning- 
>   en vid tve tillfdllen krigsmateriel    
>   fren Baltikum i lasten. Enligt kvdll-  
>   ens Uppdrag granskning i SVT rvrde     
>   det sig om rysk elektronik som svenska 
>   fvrsvaret tog in fvr att studera.      
> 
>   Lars Borgnds som gjort programmet      
>   sdger att avslvjandet belyser hur      
>   svenska myndigheter hanterat kata-     
>   strofen. -Man har t.ex. inte undersvkt 
>   bilddck, sdger han till SVT Text.      
> 
>   Den pensionerade tullintendenten       
>   Lennart Henriksson uppger att han fett 
>   order om att sldppa igenom bilarna pe  
>   begdran av fvrsvarsmakten.             
>        Lds mer pe svt.se/nyheter  



Which translates into something like this:

DOMESTIC Published November 30

"War material was freighted on the Estonia"

The weeks before the sinking the Estonia had at least at two
different occasions war material in its cargo. According to tonight's
Uppdrag Granskning(*) in the Swedish state television the equipment
was russian electronics that the Swedish military brought in for
studies.

Lars Borgnds who did the show says that the revelations shows how the
authorities have handled the situation. - One example is the failure
to examine the car deck, he says to SVT.

The retired former head of customs at the port of Stockholm Lennart
Henriksson says he was given direct orders to let the cars through
and that the order came from the military.



(*) The name of the tv show sent on Nov 30, featuring Wallraff styled
recordings of swedish officials verifying the smuggling of war
material on the direct order from the swedish military commander in
chief Owe Viktorin. It was showed in the show that Owe Viktorin
personally asked the chief of the swedish customs to order their
workers to let specific cars through customs without questions. And
so they did.


The "KSI" mentioned below is perhaps the most secret Swedish military
intelligence organization (we know of) today. The abbreviation stands
for "Kontoret fvr Sdrskild Inhdmtning", which translated into
something like "The office for special intelligence gatherings". They
are known to conduct regular espionage operations on foreign soil and
have been deeply involved in the smuggling of intelligence and the
recruiting of spies on the ground from Russia for quite some time.
They are more or less "not existing", you cannot phone MUST and ask
for KSI or someone you know working at KSI, they will not acknowledge
anything or anyone, although KSI is known to exist and is also
mentioned (briefly) in some official documents.

KSI is part of MUST, which stands for "Militdra Underdttelse och
Sdkerhetstjdnsten", translating to "The military intelligence and
security service" and is the Swedish version of CIA so essentially
KSI is like a bureau within CIA with some black bag types of jobs in
their resume as well.

MUST, http://www.hkv.mil.se/article.php?id=35
FRA, http://www.fra.se

MUST's annual report 2003
http://www.hkv.mil.se/attachments/sak_ar03_sv.pdf

MUST's annual report 2002
http://www.hkv.mil.se/attachments/sak_ar02_s5_sv.pdf


SVT Program homepage
http://svt.se/svt/jsp/Crosslink.jsp?d=2232

This is an english text present at the svt.se site.
http://svt.se/svt/jsp/Crosslink.jsp?d=13038&a=293822

- ---------------------------------------

In english: War materials smuggled on Estonia

Ten years after the Estonia ferry disaster, a former head of customs
in Stockholm has confirmed what has been the subject of much
speculation - the ferry was being used for smuggling across the
Baltic Sea. This secret cargo comprised Russian war materials that
had been let through customs on orders from the highest instance.

The person that has now chosen to tell all is Lennart Henriksson. He
was employed by the customs office in Stockholm for 38 years and was
customs inspector and head of the sea customs.
Ive been walking around thinking about what happened for ten years.
Each time Estonias name came up Ive thought the little I know should
be brought into the light of day. I want to clear my conscience, he
says.
 
His revelation has put a new light on the Estonia disaster and how it
has been handled by politicians and authorities. And its something
that has been unknown to the Accident Investigation Board that
investigated the disaster.
The evening before Lennart Henriksson got in touch with Uppdrag
Granskning, hed seen our report on what was happening ten years after
the Estonia disaster. The report took up the questions surrounding
the accident and how the experts in Sweden and abroad wanted to carry
out the investigation.
Also in the report were the rumours and speculation about the ferry
carrying smuggled goods and that it was the object of sabotage or an
explosion. We also told of some relatives to the deceased who
suspected that the truth behind the accident has not been uncovered.
And that the authorities have colluded and lied.
 
For ten years, Lennart Henriksson has borne this knowledge alone,
despite being personally acquainted with people who died when Estonia
went down on the night between the 27 and 28 September 1994.
Not long before the accident, something happened that he had never
experienced before during his many years in the customs.
 
Some time in the middle of September, I now know it was around the
12th or 13th, I went to my boss who said we were called to a meeting
with the director of customs. We went up there and the director said
that a vehicle would be arriving on the Estonia that shouldnt be
searched. He also gave me a licence number, Lennart Henriksson told
us.
He asked directly why it shouldnt be searched.
He said it was an order. 'But from where? I wondered. From the
highest quarters he answered, says Henriksson.
Normally, customs searched all the vehicles from Estonia, as
smuggling was rife. Lennart Henriksson had never experienced anything
like this before - that a vehicle was being let through without a
search.
 
When the ferry finally arrived, he went down to the ferry quay and
spoke to the driver, who was registered as Frank Larsson. The vehicle
was a Volvo 745 estate car.
 
I said the customs were carrying out inspections and he gave me a
look but I said the search would be faked. We opened a few boxes and
as far as I could see it was military electronics in them.
What did you base that on?
Anyone whos done their military service knows what it looks like. But
I dont know how old it was or what condition it was in.
 
The person that gave him the order, says Lennart Henriksson, was the
head of the Eastern customs region Inge Lindunger. Lennart
Henrikssons immediate superior, who was present when Lindunger gave
the order and who was also on the quay when the Volvo arrived, was
Superintendent Stig Sandelin.
Who this was that was bringing what looked like military electronics
into the country, Lennart Henriksson didnt know but he was curious
and made a note of the car's licence number.
Later that day, he found out who the car was registered to. He still
has that document.
 
The registered owner was Ericsson Access AB, a company that at this
time was part of the Ericsson group of companies.
But today, they say they know nothing about the incident.
 
Not long afterwards, it happened again. The ferry was schedule to
arrive on 20 September - and again there was a transport that was
waved through without inspection.
This time it was a van and Lennart Henriksson looked through the
boxes again.
 
It was the same stuff in this vehicle as well: military electronics.
I looked into a few boxes but not too closely.
What were you thinking this second time?
I thought it was a strange procedure. But orders are orders and you
dont reflect too much on why.
 
But what was it in those vehicles and who was bringing it in? And
perhaps the most important question: was there anything like it on
board Estonia on the night of the accident?
 
When Uppdrag Granskning spoke with customs superintendent Stig
Sandelin, he remains silent and refers to classified information and
national security.
On the other hand he does confirm the transports took place - and
that he saw the materials being shipped to Sweden.
But was there a similar cargo on the night of the accident? He says
he doesnt know.
Ive no idea. I dont know what was on board when she went down, says
Sandelin.
 
In a recorded conversation between Lennart Henriksson and Stig
Sandelin, he's more open. According to Stig Sandelin, there was an
agreement between the Commissioner of the Swedish Customs at the
time, Ulf Larsson, and Ove Wictorin, who was then Supreme Commander
of the Swedish armed forces, that Sandelin was to handle the customs
clearance when the materials arrived.
 
During the conversation, Lennart Henriksson asked if he knew who the
materials were for.
Yes, its the military. I dont know what they saw in it but then it
was exciting for them to get hold of old Russian stuff. Thats history
now, says Sandelin.
 
In other words, Lennart Henrikssons belief that it was military
material being brought in on the Estonia on 14 and 20 September was
correct. Stig Sandelin had confirmed it. It was Russian materials,
the Swedish defence was mixed up in it and it all took place in great
secrecy - that is still the case today.
 
Uppdrag Granskning has also received confirmation that the boxes
Lennart Henriksson looked inside contained military electronics, not
weapons or explosives. But we dont know what was in the boxes
Henriksson didnt look inside.
 
The international Accident Investigation Board, which had
investigated the accident for three years, never knew that the
Estonia passenger ferry was used to transport secret war materials
shortly before the accident.
 
But why was the Swedish defence smuggling war materials from Estonia?
It was 1994 and five years had passed since the collapse of the
Soviet Union, leaving the Baltic States free. The Soviet bases were
pulled down and all the materials were taken to Russia.
Svren Lindman was the Swedish defence attachi in the three Baltic
countries at that time.
 
It was his task to observe the military break-up in Estonia, Latvia
and Lithuania on behalf of the Swedish defence. According to Lindman,
the Russians had already shipped home the most interesting materials
from the Baltic with just a few exceptions. There was not much left.
 
On the other hand, there was a lot of advanced equipment in the
nearby Leningrad area inside Russia.
Svren Lindman took military materials back with him from the Baltic
himself occasionally. With his diplomatic passport he could easily
pass through the controls.
 
Alexander Einseln, Estonias first Supreme Commander, confirms the
situation:
Everything was for sale and anything was available if you could pay
for it", he says.
Was the situation in Estonia such that it was possible to smuggle
equipment on board the ferry?
"Yes, without doubt. There were no controls at all", says Einseln.

Svren Lindman has no knowledge of the transports that Lennart
Henriksson is talking about - on the 14 and 20 September 1994.
In his opinion, as he didn't know about them, they might have
involved the most secret section of Swedish defence - KSI, the Office
of Special Intelligence. In other words the Swedish secret service.
It would be a dereliction of duty if KSI hadnt been in the Baltic
digging up whatever they could after the collapse of the Soviet
Union, says Lindman.

We have confirmation from Lennart Henriksson and Stig Sandelin that
covert transport of Russian war materials on Estonia took place on 14
and 20 September.
But now when we contact people higher up in the customs and military
organisations to obtain more information it seems their memories fail
them. Uppdrag Granskning asked Lennart Henriksson to phone director
of customs Inge Lindunger, who had given him the order to let the
first car through.
He says he doesnt remember now either.
Whatever it was, its a thing of the past now", says Inge Lindunger.

The Commissioner of the Swedish Customs at the time Ulf Larsson
answers likewise:
It doesnt ring any bells", he says.
We get the same response from the Supreme Commander of the day Ove
Wictorin: it's nothing he remembers.

Then can KSI, the secret service organisation, have acted
independently without the knowledge of the Supreme Commander?
Officially, KSI is part of the military's intelligence and security
service MUST but is such a secret organisation that nothing is said
about it and very few know how and where it operates or who works
there.
The head of MUST at this time was Erik Rossander.
Of course the intelligence service is interested in the material
standard of other powers. Thats one of the assignments. But Im not
saying how you get it, states Rossander.
Otherwise, he wouldnt comment on the issue.
Everything we did is covered by the secrets act and that still
applies.

The heads of customs had slight recollections or none at all; the
Supreme Commander and the head of Ericsson Access said they had no
knowledge of the covert transport of war materials on Estonia.
And yet we know they took place on the 14 and 20 September.
The question is, was there a cargo like it on the car deck when the
ferry sank on the 28th?

The former Supreme Commander of Estonia, Alexander Einseln, believes
that if there was a military cargo on the night of the accident, it
could explain, in his view, the extraordinary way in which the
Estonia disaster was handled.
It's unusually suspicious that a democratic country like Sweden
should react so quickly to cover the wreck and keep everyone away. I
saw the same behaviour from the Finns and the Estonians and thats
what has made me question whether something had to be concealed. Why
such a hurry? wonders Einseln.

What do you think should be done now?
The ship must be lifted and inspected. But I wouldnt let the three
countries involved be part of it. Countries without any national
interests to protect should be asked to help, he says.

REPORTER: Lars Borgnds

- ---------------------------------------


Links about the Estonia disaster

http://www.estoniasamlingen.se/
http://www.seainfo.se
http://user.tninet.se/~uht674g
http://www.estonia.kajen.com
http://w1.316.telia.com/~u31612930
http://www.multi.fi/~stigb/Estonia
http://www.titanicnorden.com/skepp/estonia.html
http://factgroup.nu
http://heiwaco.tripod.com
http://axelnelson.com/skepp/Estonia.html
http://susning.nu/Estonia
http://www.elaestonia.org



Yours
Berra

(Verification may not work due to high bit characters)


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