<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/today-in-history-february-28-what-happened-on-this-day-olof-palme-assassination/81a6e37c-a64a-4553-b662-245f6217804f" rel="" target="" title="Swedish Prime Minister Olaf Palme was assassinated"><span>Swedish Prime Minister Olaf Palme was assassinated</span></a><span> on a </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/sweden" rel="" target="" title="Stockholm street"><span>Stockholm street</span></a><span> on </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/today-in-history" rel="" target="" title="February 28, 1986"><span>February 28, 1986</span></a><span>.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/who-killed-swedens-prime-minister-the-1986-assassination-of-olof-palme-is-finally-solved-maybe/c8149a48-4610-4d30-82d9-4fb8d1a57396" rel="" target="" title="Palme was gunned down"><span>Palme was gunned down</span></a><span> as he and his wife walked home from seeing a movie in the city's CBD.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Despite more than 25 eyewitnesses, investigators were unable to get a clear idea of who the killer was.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/today-in-history-august-28-what-happened-on-this-day-stockholm-syndrom/05c01aa1-b7d8-42fc-9c88-0fce1dbce9ff" rel="" target="" title="The six-day bank siege that started the 'Stockholm syndrome' myth"><strong><span>The six-day bank siege that started the 'Stockholm syndrome' myth</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The description of the assassin was wildly inconsistent between witnesses, and a police sketch released days afterwards was based on the account of someone who did not actually see him.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Numerous conspiracy theories were posited, including that he was killed by a South African spy because of Palme's opposition to apartheid.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Other theories include that he was killed by Chilean fascists, the CIA, the police, Kurdish militants and the Yugoslavian secret service.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/world/today-in-history-february-28-what-happened-on-this-day-olaf-palme/139acef5-1507-4a72-94c5-d59ad899237f" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Three years later, habitual criminal Christer Pettersson was identified as the killer and tried and convicted.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/today-in-history-february-19-what-happened-on-this-day-nikko-jenkins/e918bf40-c62f-445a-be8f-0611a0fd2512"><strong><span>Serial killer sues state for letting him out of prison</span></strong></a><span></span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>But it was revealed police had directed witnesses, including Palme's wife, as to who the suspect was in the line-ups.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Pettersson was freed a year later on appeal.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>But an alleged eyewitness to the murder claimed his claims to the police had been repeatedly ignored.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/olof-palme-sweden-drops-cold-case-murder-investigation-main-suspect-stig-engstrom-died-crime-news/af7d587f-dd17-4ffb-b02a-09bbc29bfcea" rel="" target="" title="Stig Engstrom"><span>Stig Engstrom</span></a><span> spent years detailing how he arrived at the crime scene moments after the shooting and had pointed out the killer's escape route to police.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Engstrom repeatedly told his story to the media in the years following, his details becoming more vivid over time.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Police brushed him off as an attention seeker and a publicity-seeking nuisance.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/today-in-history-february-21-what-happened-on-this-day/46577e25-d624-4baa-9930-cae7637a36f4"><strong><span>President told 'under no circumstances' to drink from third glass</span></strong></a><span></span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>But in 2020, years after Engstrom's death, prosecutors named him as the likely culprit of Palme's murder.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/today-in-history-august-28-what-happened-on-this-day-stockholm-syndrom/05c01aa1-b7d8-42fc-9c88-0fce1dbce9ff" rel="" target="" title="leading theory is Palme's murder"><span>leading theory is Palme's murder</span></a><span> was purely opportunistic.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Palme happened to be walking past as Engstrom left work at an insurance company.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Because he was dead, the investigation was closed after 34 years.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/today-in-history-february-25-what-happened-on-this-day-zyzzyx-road/a4c4cbcd-5d42-4ecd-8625-cb9343c93178"><strong><span>Only six people saw the biggest flop of all time</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/today-in-history" target="" title="For more from our Today in History archive, click here."><strong><span>For more from our Today in History archive, click here</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div 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