Clark Olofsson, one of the two notorious criminals associated with the term "Stockholm syndrome," has died at the age of 78, according to his family. Olofsson gained worldwide fame in 1973 during a dramatic kidnapping and bank heist in Stockholm, where he captivated the public’s imagination and became intertwined with the psychology surrounding hostage situations.
His family shared the news of his passing due to a prolonged illness with the media outlet Dagens ETC. During an intense six-day standoff that captivated Sweden, the hostages began to sympathize with Olofsson and his accomplice Jan-Erik Olsson, demonstrating a profound psychological connection that would later be termed Stockholm syndrome.
The notorious bank siege was instigated by Olsson, who took four hostages and requested that Olofsson, a former prison acquaintance, be brought in as part of his demands. The Swedish authorities acquiesced, allowing Olofsson to enter the bank, which was under heavy police surveillance.
In later interviews, Olofsson claimed he was approached by law enforcement to act as an insider, with promises to ensure the hostages' safety in exchange for a reduced sentence. He managed to persuade one of the captives, Kristin Enmark, to communicate with the Swedish Prime Minister, advocating for the robbers and asserting, "I fully trust Clark and the robber... They haven't done a thing to us." Enmark's defense of her captors captured widespread attention, as she expressed her trust and described the surreal experience of the ordeal.
The standoff concluded after six harrowing days, when police stormed the building and employed tear gas to incapacitate the criminals. Significantly, the hostages refused to abandon their captors out of fear for their safety, later refusing to testify against them, further complicating discussions around the psychological effects of such traumas.
Psychologists have since debated Stockholm syndrome as an actual diagnosis, with some dismissing it as a misguided label for complex survival mechanisms in extreme situations. It was coined by Swedish criminologist Nils Bejerot after the siege to describe the newfound affections displayed by victims toward their captors, a concept that gained further notoriety following the kidnapping of Patty Hearst.
Enmark has publicly expressed her doubts about the syndrome, calling it a method of blaming victims for their reactions in life-threatening situations. Olofsson had a lengthy criminal history, spending years in prison before being released for the last time in 2018 after a drug-related offense in Belgium. In 2022, he was portrayed by actor Bill Skarsgård in the Netflix drama series "Clark," reigniting interest in his life and legacy.
