CRI听力:Terrorist suspect Akilov admits what he did in Stockholm

The suspect in a terrorism case in Sweden has admitted that it was he who planned and conducted the attack in the center of Stockholm last April. 

The first stage of the prosecution against Rakhmat Akilov has ended after four days of questioning in Stockholm District Court. The first two days of the hearing focused on pictures and text taken from a memory card, and were used to illustrate Akilov's motivation and planning for the attack, as well as his contacts with others through the internet.

Chief Prosecutor Hans Irman asked all of the questions on day three of the hearing. On day four, the questions were asked by lawyers representing the victims of the attack last April 7th. Akilov did not express any sympathy for the victims, nor did he voice any regrets.

The 900 page investigation document includes several pictures showing mothers and their babies on Drottninggatan, or Queen Street. The picture is said to have motivated Akilov to pick the street as the target of last year's attack. He is accused of using a large truck to run-down pedestrians, aiming to kill or injure as many as possible. Five people were killed and 14 others seriously injured during the attack.

Lawyer Jessica Sandberg conducted questioning on behalf of the families of a British man and a Belgian woman who died in the attack.

"His purpose was not only to kill people in Sweden, but also to kill tourist pedestrians in Drottninggatan."

Akilov said he never met the people he talked with online, but his action was similar with the ones Nice, London, and other cities, using vehicles to run down innocent civilians. 

Lawyer Mari Schaub stated that she didn't believe Akilov to be a Muslim, based on her questioning of the suspect.

"For me the grand picture is that this is a misled individual that committed a selfish crime and he hurt a lot of people."

Akilov is described as a 39-year-old construction worker from Uzbekistan.

The next step in the prosecution against him is to summon the witnesses who were on Drottninggatan, and then the family members of the dead.  Akilov's defense will launch its arguments on May 9th and a verdict is expected this summer. 

Aakilov is facing a possible life sentence in prison.