Murderer: Johanna Möller (aka The Arboga Woman) [Part. 1]

Scandinavian Crimes (w/ Devante & Delila)

Years of Incident: 2014-2016
Location: Sweden
Murderer: Johanna Möller (aka The Arboga Woman)
Victim(s): 2-3
Method: Murder, Manipulation

In August 2016, Sweden was rattled by a gruesome family tragedy named the Arboga murder. A man was discovered brutally stabbed to death, and his wife severely wounded in a summer house near Arboga. Their daughter Johanna was accused of the murder which is unusual for a mother of six with no criminal history. However, the narrative of the infamous "Arboga woman" doesn't commence with murder, but with an entirely different tale.

This tale consists of manipulation,  gaslighting, and full-blown narcissism. This story tells how Johanna's desire to get what she wants by any means necessary. 


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Transcript

Welcome to Scandinavian Crimes. My name is Devante and say hello to my lovely co-host Delila.(...) Hi.

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And on this podcast we cover famous Scandinavian criminals who made their mark throughout Scandinavian history.(...) So today we're covering another part one and part two, blame Delilah.

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This is a very interesting case because it's not, it involves murder, but the person we're talking about didn't directly commit the murder.(...) It's more like even an incitement of murder in a sense, but you know, we'll get into the details and obviously we'll talk about it in discussion.(...) But on August 2016, Sweden was rattled by a gruesome family tragedy named the Arboga murder. A man was discovered brutally stabbed to death and his wife severely wounded in the summer house near Arboga.(...) Their daughter Johanna was accused of the murder, which is unusual for a mother of six with no criminal history.(...) However, the narrative of the infamous Arboga woman doesn't commence with murder, but with an entirely different set of circumstances.

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So you already know what to do. Come watch the podcast, you know, grab your snacks, grab your teeth, you know, any way to work, you know, tuck yourself in a little corner on a train on the bus.(...) And this is a story of Johanna Moller.

Previous Crimes

In June 2016, a 41-year-old woman named Johanna Möller (Moller) from Eskilstuna (Es-kill-tuna) was accused of sexually exploiting two refugee boys. The news editor at Es-kill-tuna Kuri-ren received this information from an unknown source and two reporters were promptly tasked with investigating the source of the information. They found a video showing Johanna and the boys naked on a bed. A group from Es-kill-tuna Kuri-ren met with the two boys who also provided the video.

During extensive interviews, it was revealed that Johanna had promised to assist with housing and placement for the boys, by having contact with social services to facilitate this. What ended up happening was that she sexually exploited the boys by promising them accommodation at her residence. She met the boys through a family business she co-owns, which provides care and housing known as an HVB home. With her influence and network, she could provide help for the boys.  

The journalists in the investigative team conducted a thorough examination uncovering Johanna's details, including her name, family members, children, and past partners, as well as her business affairs. Upon contacting Johanna, she denied all allegations and instead pointed the finger at her daughter and claimed that it was her in the video. 

It was later revealed that Johanna had instructed her daughter to lie if questioned about the video. The daughter was deeply upset about this and refused to participate in Johanna's deceitful plan, not wanting to be misrepresented as a prostitute. 

Es-kill-tuna Kuri-ren released a revealing exposé on Johanna, triggering widespread attention and strong reactions nationwide. Eventually, Johanna admitted that she was the individual featured in the video, though she claimed that it was consensual sex. Instead, she files a complaint against the refugee boys for invasive filming and extortion.

A former colleague of Johanna, whom we'll refer to as the Ex-colleague, met the boys and heard about their situation. He advised them to contact their case handlers but found that the social services were unresponsive to their need for help. The Ex-colleague also encouraged the boys to file a police report, which they did to no avail. Consequently, he talked to a caseworker who suggested seeking help from the media to bring attention to their case. This led to the submission of tips to Es-kill-tuna Kuri-ren, setting current events in motion.

Magnus, a police investigator, took on the role of handling the case involving the boys. Assigned to probe Johanna's actions, he perceived no significant threat based on the video evidence. As a result, his perspective diverged from that of Es-kill-tuna Kuri-ren, which characterized the situation as involving sexual coercion and exploitation. The police had a different perspective that they worked with instead.

Their suspicions centered on the Ex-colleague who had advised the boys to approach the media. According to police findings, the Ex-colleague orchestrated the events due to financial discrepancies between himself and Johanna. Allegedly, he convinced the boys to intoxicate Johanna and engage in sexual acts with her, filming the encounter. He then sent the footage to Es-kill-tuna Kuri-ren to seek compensation of some sort, among other motives.

The sex tape showing Johanna engaging in sexual activities with the refugee boys has severely impacted the family business, leaving her colleagues disheartened as social services refuse to associate with an unethical enterprise. Despite her alleged sexual exploitation of youths in a particularly vulnerable situation, the police decide to close the case. However, attention soon shifts from the sex tape to a new video, revealing that the same boys had been brutally physically assaulted. 

This led to a new police investigation and the boys described the brutality they endured. The two boys had been attacked by 10 individuals in their apartment. They were beaten with pistol butts by armed perpetrators wielding various weapons like knives and sticks. Blood was everywhere—on their faces, in their mouths. The assailants were there not only to physically harm the boys but also to confiscate their phones and intimidate them into retracting their complaints. 

The boys claimed that Johanna had sent these people to retrieve the video from their phones and harm the boys. According to the Ex-colleague, Johanna allegedly intimidated people by claiming she had connections in the criminal world and within the police force. He explains that he quickly realized that things were not right with Johanna and sensed negative energies from her as a person.

This incident was classified as severe abuse. Although the boys identified two out of the ten assailants present in the apartment, the police investigation yielded no results and was subsequently closed. The police stated that numerous claims were made from various sources which is common during fights and abuse cases. Subsequently, the authorities were unable to ascertain individual responsibilities, resulting in the closure of the investigation.

Background 

Johanna grew up in Es-kill-tuna with her parents and sister who is two years older than Johanna. Her mother worked at a bank and her father was an entrepreneur. When Johanna was young, she was well-liked and popular in school, spending most of her time practicing gymnastics. She became a mother for the first time at the age of 18 and soon had three children while pursuing a degree in Social Work at Örebro University.

In the autumn of 2015, Johanna resigned from her position at the social services in Es-kill-tuna. During this time, she ran a family foster care business from her apartment where she lived with her younger twin children. Seeing an opportunity to assist refugees, Johanna ventured into entrepreneurship with a colleague that she knew previously from the municipality. Together, they began facilitating placements for refugee children and teenagers across Sweden.

The colleague, whom we will refer to as Anna, had previously worked alongside Johanna in the social services department. Despite the success and high demand for foster homes for refugee minors, Anna acknowledges Johanna's tendency to occasionally cross professional boundaries, becoming overly involved with both foster families and clients.

Johanna's financial management was also very lax, despite substantial income, expenses often exceeded earnings. She often indulges herself in lavish purchases with a monthly salary of 70,000 SEK she receives from her new business. While she enjoyed traveling with her family, she and the children also frequented her parents' summer home in Gran-liden, outside Arboga. Despite her sizable income, her father, Göran (Juren), often provided financial assistance. On one occasion, she received a one-million-SEK advance on her inheritance. 

According to Johanna's sister, their father consistently assisted Johanna financially, often succumbing to her manipulation to fulfill her desires. While their mother also provided support, it was typically within normal reasons. The mother hoped Johanna would become more self-reliant and she frequently challenged Johanna's requests for money. Yet, the father struggled to deny her requests, leading Johanna to favor him over her mother.

It became evident that Johanna's upbringing had fostered a sense of entitlement in her, and she was very spoiled as a result. The scandals surrounding the sex tape have severely impacted her finances, and soon she finds herself running out of money. Her mother feels that the support for Johanna has gone on too long, as they've faced ongoing challenges with her behavior since her teenage years. It wasn't until the year leading up to the Arboga incident that they started doubting the validity of her claims.

A conflict arises between Johanna and her parents upon discovering that Johanna is accommodating refugees in the apartment they purchased for her. To make room for the refugee boys in the apartment, Johanna forces her 21-year-old son to move out and relocate. She now resides there with her three-and-a-half-year-old twins.

The parents were mad and a dispute brewed between the daughter and her parents with the parents exerting pressure on Johanna and urging her to vacate the apartment. During their last encounter, mother and daughter found themselves at odds. Johanna later discovers that her parents had the intention to evict her from the apartment and sell the cherished summer house at Gran-liden. Then suddenly, another startling event unfolds.

The Arboga Murder

August 3, 2016, 22:08 an intruder entered the summer house in Gran-liden and brutally attacked Johanna's parents, inflicting over 20 stab wounds on each of them. Juren died of his injuries almost immediately, while miraculously, Johanna's mother survived. Both were assaulted while asleep, and the assailant managed to escape before being identified. Johanna's mother woke up to severe injuries and promptly dialed 112. Approximately 25 minutes later the police and ambulance eventually reached the scene, providing medical attention to Johanna's mother.

With no other individuals present, Johanna's mother becomes a suspect in Juren's murder. Severely wounded, she was promptly transported to Es-kill-tuna Hospital for treatment. The following day, the police conduct the initial interrogation with Johanna's mother and ask routine questions, probing whether the couple had any enemies or individuals with a motive to harm them. 

The only person who matched that description was Johanna, prompting the mother to recount to the police the recent fight they had experienced. Before the night of the murder, Johanna repeatedly inquired about her parents' plans for a house viewing at the summer house. Additionally, she mentioned her intention to visit with her children the day following the murders. 

The forensic examiner examines the mother's injuries and swiftly concludes that she did not inflict them upon herself. It's not uncommon for suspects to self-inflict injuries to manipulate the police's understanding of events. Hence the police promptly cleared the mother of suspicion, absolving her from any involvement in the murder. With the mother cleared of suspicion, attention now shifts towards Johanna.

Investigation

The response from the National Forensic Center (NFC) indicated a DNA match found under Juren's nails, consisting of a mixture of his DNA and that of another individual. This DNA match corresponds to a young man who has been increasingly seen in Johanna's company, Mohammad Rajabi. 

The police also received additional evidence reported by Anna. She informed them of a substance resembling chocolate discovered inside their work vehicle. It ended up being blood smears in different locations on the passenger side and door. Later, it was confirmed that the blood matched Juren's DNA. The police initiate an investigation into Mohammad, a man almost two decades younger than Johanna and romantically involved with her. 

On December 17, 2015, Johanna and Mohammad crossed paths when he relocated from Es-kill-tuna and got placed in Johanna's HVB home in Arboga. He sought refuge at Johanna's residence on Christmas Day due to leg discomfort. When Mohammad's health deteriorated abruptly, Johanna suggested that he stay with her instead of returning to the HVB home.

Initially, Mohammad declined, preferring to return to the residence. His unfamiliarity with the language also contributed to his reluctance to live with Johanna. However, staff members recommended Mohammad to stay with Johanna, citing the convenience of being closer to Es-kill-tuna Hospital in case of a health emergency. Thus, their relationship blossomed from the very first evening together.

Mohammad has faced considerable hardships before arriving in Arboga. He has openly admitted to struggling with substance abuse. Given his circumstances, he has viewed Johanna as a protector. He was heavily reliant on Johanna, who provided him with financial assistance, clothing, and housing. She significantly improved his standard of living compared to his peers from the shelter in Arboga.

With sufficient evidence, both Johanna and Mohammad become suspects and are subjected to police surveillance. Yet, it came to light that the couple had started making their way to Stockholm Arlanda Airport. The police felt a sense of urgency to intervene, worrying that they intended to flee the country. Just as the couple was buying tickets and entering the airport terminal at Arlanda, law enforcement apprehended them on August 16, 2016.

Following their arrest at Arlanda airport, Johanna and Mohammad are held in custody for three days. As the interrogations failed to produce sufficient evidence, the police released the couple but continued to surveillance them. 

In a later interview, Johanna disclosed that they had sought permission from the police to travel abroad temporarily to process what happened to her parents. Johanna expresses her dismay at the accusation against her regarding the Arboga murder. She asserts that there is no evidence linking them to the crime. Furthermore, she highlights the strong bond she shares with her father, emphasizing his unwavering support throughout her life. Despite undergoing DNA testing, interrogation, and a 72-hour detainment, she felt unfairly treated as though she were a murderer.

However, inside the car with Mohammad, Johanna's stance on the murder suspicions takes a different turn. She advises Mohammad to deny all accusations so they can marry and relocate abroad.

Despite their release, they remain under suspicion of murder and attempted murder. Alongside this, questions arise concerning the death of Johanna's husband, Aki Paasila, a year prior in August 2015, at the same address as the summer cottage in Granliden outside Arboga.


There were a lot of things that can kind of showcase her character as a person.

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Obviously, the first part with the refugee boys,(...) where it's a lot of like

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she kind of switched her story.(...) First, she pointed her finger at her daughter and then telling her daughter to like you know say it's her and la la la and then then she admitted that okay I did it but it was consensual and then she like I feel like she's changing and trying to like gaslight people and it disappoints me that the police officers didn't see it on the same level as the Escaletuna Curitán did because they were boys even though they were refugee boys which I don't think should matter they were underage boys and she have been using them for sex and feeling good about herself and I hate that she's doing the same thing with Muhammad(...) and it shows that they are very reliant on her because they don't want to leave Sweden. They don't want to be thrown away. They want to have a home so they feel like they have to do these things

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for her and that puts them in a situation and then when they ask for help nobody cares

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and that's also something that I wanted to talk about because I think it matters

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because it's a very normal phenomenon that people or refugees like this of color(...) just not always get the help that they need in these types of situations

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and it's especially prevalent for those that are immigrant waiting for citizenship.

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I don't know the scenario for these boys specifically but I can assume that they were

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they didn't receive a citizenship yet and yes racism is a thing everywhere and it's also prevalent in the northern Scandinavian parts as well and I think that also is something that should be considered in these type of scenarios as well.(...) Since you're taking a pause here. Yes, my brain was buffering.(...) I will say one thing about people like this that I always find interesting is that(...) obviously not absolving her behavior at all but people tend to do this when they when people regular normal people who are not in situations where their back isn't against the wall don't need their support so I know for a fact she's taking advantage of people especially these young boys sexually because no grown man probably wanted to deal with her. She was an adult woman. Now obviously that's not in the story but I'm just this is purely my two cents.(...) I can tell you this though regarding that okay you can continue would you want to say because I have stuff.(...) Yeah because I personally just don't think like a grown man would want to deal with all that she's doing especially her parents and even though they're victims in this as well her parents played a part in her behavior because unfortunately we have kids and give them everything they want they think when they get older oh I should get everything I want like how how am I not getting everything yeah and that entitlement is very real people think like oh no they'll grow out of it that's a very real thing and there's a reason why saying no doesn't have to it doesn't have to be all the time but it has to be in situations where you know they need to understand that money comes because you work money comes because it's earned and some things they have to earn so that way they know not to you know expect things out of life and they have to work for it and they have to you know appreciate it you know it gives them a new perspective because they're just children and then they become adults like this but I'm pretty sure she had a lot of relationship issues because of her behavior she did her ex-husbands and boyfriends all had they were all saying the same things like hey like there was something wrong with her she had a a need of validation always had to um you know she they basically said the same things um so I think because I I guess she wanted attention and she wanted to feel like she is worth something I guess and that's why she basically used these kids um or you know underaged boys um and um another thing that I wanted to like talk about regarding the refugee boys that they had to basically go and make like they had to connect with media to get help is another thing that I find is very sad because that's something that is happening worldwide everybody's doing that as soon as they don't get the help they need from the authorities they go to media and then it becomes a wide like news report and then they get the help they need and it's not an uncommon thing that's happened that's like everywhere that's why everybody's recording now everybody's documenting everything because nobody believes people of color especially in uh this scenario because it took place in what's weeding right yeah so this well I don't live there but uh well at least from what I've seen and heard some people especially when it comes to immigrants there seem to be a very strong uh dislike for immigrants from very specific countries in Europe in general but like it's it's a thing in Scandinavia as well yeah like I've come to understand there's like a hierarchy of like immigrants obviously if you're from you know like a certain country where you're like European looking you know people are far more accepting but then there's like a tier list of okay these people are still fine these people are still fine and the bottom of the barrel obviously is people of color people who are black middle eastern anything like that they're like the bottom of the barrel yeah and it sucks but in reality you know these are still people but unfortunately we have this mentality where it's like you know people don't see them as people just because you know they're trying to come into a country and we don't own this planet you know all these territories is for us to live and some people don't see them as people which is sad but to to like the police defense though if we're gonna play you know the opposite direction um if you look at the video I've seen parts of it um and it just it wasn't really anything like physical abuse and because of the law you know and the law the law doesn't say anything about you know you can have sex it has to be physical like uh forced physical like um rape where you're getting like abusive in a way and the video wasn't really showing that and I guess that's why the police was like yeah but there's not any like she didn't hit them or hurt them therefore it's it's fine

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um and I guess you know because of that and because of the law for for those type of situations

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she has the law with like on her side basically um and I guess you know but if you think of the moral aspect as like aspect of it um I believe that it's completely wrong you know in it and I believe I hope at least that the police thought that as well but because there's no you know nothing there's nothing they could do because of the law you know and how the law looks I'm not completely sure like paragraph why like how what the law says but I'm I know that I've seen cases like this and yeah I just want to say something really quickly really quickly to play devil's advocate to your devil's advocate okay I know for and I'm pretty sure to some level you like understand where I'm coming from when you know when the police especially in previous cases we covered you know when the police like really believe that someone did something like they'll do just about anything they'll do illegal stuff if they feel like someone really did something so I think you think they should have tried harder really yeah they didn't really care because like let's be honest we've talked about cases where the detective or someone who's over the case or police was like I really feel like it's this person and like you know that they really then again we don't have every bit of information there could have been something who was really passionate they did think that it was the ex-colleague's fault and that's what I hate about it I'm like why did you do that because okay I can I can give you this hint though uh the ex-colleague is coming from he's he's not like he's not from Sweden he has a yeah I mean that's a different background and that's why I was like so they have proof and then they just speculate that the ex-colleague forced the kids to intoxicate her and they just came up with a lot of assumptions and that's why I'm like why you have you know video proof I don't know but it's unfortunately that's what it is over here too in America people think like oh my god Mexicans they're all criminals I'm like uh yeah you do know like those are some of the hardest working people I've ever met right but then people have this they have assumptions because of their own internal bias so and it's not like we're trying to be political and stuff right now it's just like it just I just can't find any other reason for them to not get help and for the police to not you know continue on the in the investigation and also to put the situation on the ex-colleague that was trying to help the kids(...) and also believe it or not like we're like I said we're not trying to be political but also bias prejudice and racism actually does affect how people uh you know pass laws and uh investigate things because if let's say you go to a country whoever whoever if you're when you're listening to this imagine a scenario and then we'll go back to you know what we're talking about imagine going somewhere and something happens to you something bad happens to you but because of how they feel about you where you're from who you are they don't look into it because and I'm pretty sure every like every woman could relate to this doesn't matter if you're you know a white woman black doesn't matter can you imagine telling someone this happened to me they don't look into it because of who you are you didn't have a choice you were born that way so and that's real life and that happens with people who are from different countries so just keep that in mind it's not political but this is actual things that happen and this is 2016 this is recent history like yeah 2016 I was technically considered adult still so this is recent for me I can say this if you guys are interested in the topic there's a lot of research research about this and especially when it comes to like criminal and criminology in general as well with racism so look that up it's very interesting but how do you feel Devaunte about the the 10 assaulters that invaded the apartment and if it was do you think that Johanna was sending them there to retrieve the phone or whatever or do you think that it was just a coincidence because I I don't know how I feel about that one you know it's it's a mixed situation because personally I don't believe in coincidences that much you know there there can be situations where like it can be unfortunate but there's at least in this based on the information I have I'm like that's not random you know 10 men show up I'm like what are the chances of 10 individual men deciding on that one day on that like hey let's do this thing to this very specific person right it would have been different if they like gotten mugged by one person that I probably would have been like you know what maybe because mugging can happen and usually it's by threat of a knife or a gun but 10 individuals were able to come together and make the same choice that is a very uh that's not a very common situation in terms of a scenario like this so I personally believe based on what we were told in the articles and the information and the story this is that's and I can also believe the ex-colleague when he said that oh yeah Johanna also always threatened people that oh she knew people from the criminal world la la la I mean like you know it doesn't sound off to me because it does seem strange but even but I I feel like I need more information before I can say anything regarding that one but yeah before I absolutely can make up my mind I agree I need more information but just based off of that I would just take a stab in the dark no pun intended but how do you feel about the the actual arboga arboga murder um do you feel like you know regarding Muhammad being so dependent on Johanna and like having this relationship with her again another proof that she I feel like she's like fetishizing like she is she's boys of color or something yeah it's a fetish a little bit but I think it's primarily a power dynamic so once again this is which is why you should be listening to the old episodes um I mentioned this about abuse in general where it's not specifically uh correlation wise it's not specifically tied to a gender it's related to power dynamic and so in this case even though Muhammad probably did have a physical power dynamic she had a power dynamic over him based on what he needed he she had financial power she was providing him with a home with food with clothes basically providing him with a necessity which means she had something over him which gave her control and allowed her to manipulate and abuse him as well so that power dynamic it plays a part because she was taking advantage of someone's situation who needed the help and was like hmm I can I can use this to my advantage and get what I want physically and you know get everything she needs from a younger person because you know especially 20 years younger(...) that's a huge you know a huge gap in age that's yeah you know that's why I'm like why and

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I also think about it because like she ended up being a mom at 18 which is pretty young here in Sweden um maybe she felt like failed relationships you know I don't know how her mind works right now um or was working back then but it just felt she probably like the younger she probably like like you said the 18 year old thing I think she probably likes that younger guys like she likes that feeling of younger guys feeling young yeah yeah and I wanted to say talk about that like how like you know about her mental health basically so um

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Johanna has been categorized based on personality traits like narcissism and psychopathy in a book authored by Swedish researchers focusing on offender profiling so they based on her behaviors they think that she's a narcissist uh and

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I just to me I don't know maybe I feel like that's true in a way but I also feel like she's like(...) can narcissists be uh manipulative they can right yeah they can be yeah very a lot of them can be because like she's super manipulative but she always wants her way and obviously Yaran was just a victim and I don't know why he kept doing it he was enabling her so much you know um and I'm so glad that he had the mother as well like like the mother was trying yeah the the dad was the big biggest problem and but the funny thing is I wouldn't even say she's a talented manipulator because she was only good at manipulating people who needed her yeah much like you said her ex partners when they didn't need her they left so it shows that she's only good at manipulating people they are also the ones that are easiest to manipulate either way so exactly so she's not like a talented you know gaslighter or anything like that she's just someone who okay well no one else wants to deal with me I'll just tolerate I'll just deal with people who have no choice but to deal with me so it just it just proves the point of how self-centered she is and that narcissism and all that stuff you know another thing that I thought that was very interesting that the mom said in an interview that Johanna was supposed to visit them before the murder so technically(...) she would find them dead if it would happen that both that died uh Johanna would find them dead and also be the victim and she would get sympathy and everything you know if the mom died as well(...) so the mom was saying that to the police like hey like she was supposed to meet us uh at the same the day of the murder or the day after the murder and if I would have died(...) nobody would have known you know about Johanna and the fight between them and the parents and everything you know so I didn't think about it until I was like that's actually true like if the mom would die she would have been this pitied woman and everybody would have been like oh my god we feel so bad for you your parents died right no I'm just disagreeing with you that's all but uh

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I think we should at least this should be this should be it for part one at least yeah the part two is also very interesting because the part two is gonna be very juicy um so be sure to you know tune in for the following week so that way you can get part two and let's end the episode off on the typical note that we usually do which is food of course uh I would like to eat some wok like some stir-fried noodles with some veggies and I don't know maybe some meat I haven't really thought about it um let me see what do I want I can go for some nice burnt in some nice you know the pork belly with the salted and you know that sounds really nice though it's super good super good that would be nice I like pork belly as well delicious but you know once again if you guys enjoyed the episode if you're listening to this on well obviously listening to this on one of the podcasting platforms be sure to give us a nice little four to five star review you know depending on the platform uh show us some love leave us a nice lovely review and be sure to come back next week for part two peace out guys bye