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There is even more circumstantial evidence. Let us for a while return to the comings and goings during the 24 hours around the murder of County Police Commissioner and the first Chief Investigator, Hans Holmér. Officially, of course, he was in Borlänge to participate in the Vasa skiing competition – something that later on turned out to be a downright lie. This has been disclosed by his private driver, Rolf “Dallas” Dahlgren who is now deceased, and who claimed that he in fact drove Holmér past the murder site seven minutes after the assassination!
In connection with a visit to the Riksdag building at the end of the
1980s, Rolf Dahlgren handed in a detailed version (See PalmeNytt no 7-02) about what had happened to Member of Parliament Jerry Martinger, ordinary member of the Commission of Justice 1988-92. Rolf Dahlgren’s story exists in Jerry Martinger’s memorandum, which was delivered to the Chief Public Prosecutor’s Unit for Special Cases on June 13, 2000, registration number C-1-31-99 (but which, like so much other evidence, is today non-existent in the investigation, according to Detective Superintendent Åke Röst):
On Friday, February 28, 1986, the intention was that Police Inspector Rolf Dahlgren should be on duty from 3.00 p.m. until midnight. Just after lunch, he was, however, contacted by phone by his boss, Hans Holmér, who told him that he could take the rest of the day off, except for one task: to fetch someone at the Stockholm Central Station at 3.00 p.m. As the reason why Dahlgren could take the day off, Holmér explained,
“I don’t intend to be in Stockholm during the evening.”
Dahlgren was under the impression that the call had been made from Holmér’s office, and went towards the center of Stockholm. The man he was to fetch turned out to be an executive type about 60 years old. Dahlgren guessed that he had arrived by train from some other part of the country.
After a short drive to the Slottskajen, Dahlgren parked close to the Mynttorget. The man was gone for about twenty minutes. When he came back, he was apparently pressed for time, saying that they had to hurry to the Police HQ. Rolf Dahlgren became stressed, and happened to back into a car. But when he got out to leave a message to the owner, his passenger shouted in a temper,
“We bloody well don’t have time for that now. I will take the car number, and fix this later.”
During the drive from Slottskajen to police headquarters, nothing was said in the car. When they got there, the man pointed out that Dahlgren had to go down into the garage of the HQ, where two younger men were waiting.
After this task was completed, Dahlgren went back to his home on Kungsholmen 706
to spend some quiet time with a few colleagues during the afternoon. A couple of hours later, at 5.20 p.m. another police officer unexpectedly arrived at Dahlgren’s flat. Dahlgren did not know him, but was aware that he worked “close to Holmér”. It also turned out that he brought a message from the County Police Commissioner telling Dahlgren that he had to be on duty after all, and among other things, should pick up Holmér.
(For some unknown reason, Rolf Dahlgren did not want to tell Member of Parliament Jerry Martinger where, when and how he was to fetch Hans Holmér. When questioned directly whether this was to be carried out in the usual way, Dahlgren claimed that, as things were, he could not answer that. We therefore have to leave a five-hour gap in the story, and return to Martinger's document which continues with the activities of the two people during the evening):
According to driver Rolf Dahlgren, he crisscrossed around Stockholm from about 10.30 p.m. in a way he had difficulty understanding. All the time, Holmér was giving him orders to go to different places, which made Dahlgren feel as if he was driving an inquisitive tourist.
At about 20.45 p.m., Hans Holmér jumped out of the car at Mariatorget in Söder, and walked to an entrance of some kind of hotel. Dahlgren noticed how Holmér talked to an unknown man in the doorway, and also that the man gave Holmér a newspaper. In connection with this, the man asked Dahlgren to wait a few minutes, while the Police Commissioner read something in the paper.
After this, they drove off towards the central parts of Stockholm, and thus passed the coming murder site several times. The older man, whom Dahlgren had driven during the afternoon, was later fetched at the Opera not far from the Royal Castle, the Foreign Office, and the Parliament building. This took place some minutes before 11.00 p.m., and together they now drove around the Rådmansgatan district several times. Dahlgren was under the impression that the man and Holmér were looking for something or somebody there. After this, the man was let out close to Odenplan.
Just before 11.30 p.m., that is to say, a few minutes after the fatal shots on Sveavägen, they were at “one edge of Hagagatan” close to Sveaplan. Holmér stepped out of the car and went up to a man about 25 years of age. It seemed as if they had made an appointment beforehand.
After a few minutes, Holmér came back saying that Olof Palme had been shot on Sveavägen. Dahlgren at once sped off towards the crime site, where quite a lot of people had gathered, but was then told to “just go slowly past the murder site”, something he found very strange! The top brass of the police has just been told that the Prime Minister of the country has been the victim of an attempted murder, and then orders his driver to just drive on...
Rolf Dahlgren was sure that they passed the site of the crime seven minutes after the assassination, about 11.28.30 p.m. – almost at the same time as Superintendent Gösta Söderström arrived there as the first police officer.
About half an hour later (just after midnight) and after more cruising around in the centre of Stockholm, they were on Norrmälarstrand. Dahlgren was told to pick up a waiting woman about 50 years of age. This woman was then driven to an address in Sundbyberg. Dahlgren does not remember the address, but later discovered that she had forgotten some kind of jacket in the car. (Author’s remark: Can this jacket have anything to do with the mystery concerning Lisbet Palme’s coat? Please also note that both the women are of the same age).
At last, Dahlgren was ordered to drive on to the Mälarhöjden Underground station, where he let off Holmér just before 00.30 a.m. In this connection the County Police Commissioner reminded Dahlgren in no uncertain terms of his professional secrecy, after which he disappeared in a dark blue Volvo. In this car was at least one person apart from the driver. Holmér took the forgotten jacket with him.
Here ends Dahlgren’s report concerning the night of the murder – a version that has earlier been published in different ways and which has caused a lot of surprise. Journalist Sven Anér has succeeded through stubborn digging work in getting hold of Rolf Dahlgren’s payroll record (See PalmeNytt nos 7 and 8 –02) from the night of the assassination, i.e., proof that he was really working overtime that day – something that has always been officially denied.
In March, 2003, two new witnesses turned up, saying that they had seen Hans Holmér during the night of the murder, outside Kreditbanken on the corner of Norrmalmstorg and Hamngatan. It had then been about 02.20 a.m., and Holmér was wearing a black leather jacket. They recognized him both by his face and his “tough appearance”.