Sweden's 'Queen of Trash' risks prison in toxic waste crime trial

Prosecutors called Thursday for Sweden's self-proclaimed "Queen of Trash" and four others to be jailed for six years for illegally dumping toxic waste, as the country's biggest environmental crime trial ended.The once-acclaimed waste management company Think Pink is accused of dumping or burying some 200,000 tonnes of waste from the Stockholm area at 21 sites from 2015 to 2020, with no intention of processing it correctly.Its former chief executive Bella Nilsson, an ex-stripper who once called herself the "Queen of Trash", is charged with "aggravated environmental crime".Two others who also served as chief executive at times -- Nilsson's ex-husband Thomas Nilsson who founded the company, and Leif-Ivan Karlsson, an eccentric entrepreneur who starred in a reality show about his over-the-top lifestyle -- face the same charge and possible sentence.

So do "waste broker" Robert Silversten and Tobias Gustafsson, accused of organising the transportation of the waste. All five deny the charges."We did everything correctly. We did it legally. We followed the law," Bella Nilsson told the district court.Her lawyer Thomas Olsson rejected the prosecution's claim the company used falsified documents to mislead authorities, and said any wrongdoing was "by mistake".

Bella Nilsson -- who has now changed her name to Fariba Vancor -- has insisted she is the victim of a plot by business rivals.The prosecution also sought a three-year sentence against an environmental consultant accused of helping the company pass inspections, as well as sentences of between eight and 18 months for five landowners.Think Pink was hired by municipalities, construction companies, apartment co-operatives and private individuals to dispose of primarily building materials but also electronics, metals, plastics, wood, tyres and toys.But Think Pink left the piles of waste unsorted and abandoned, the court heard.

High levels of toxic PCB compounds, lead, mercury, arsenic and other chemicals were released into the air, soil and water, prosecutors said, endangering the health of human, animal and plant life.The trial opened in September 2024 after an investigation lasting several years and comprising more than 45,000 pages."This trial is unique in scope.

There has been a lot of material to go through, large amounts of waste... and the investigation and trial lasted a long time," prosecutor Anders Gustafsson told AFP.He said Think Pink's motive was money."It's extremely costly for a company to do the right thing. You make a lot if you collect the waste and don't sort it properly." Several municipalities have sought damages for clean-up and decontamination costs, totalling 260 million kronor ($27 million).One of the biggest claims is from the Botkyrka city council, where two Think Pink waste piles burned for months in 2020 and 2021 after spontaneously combusting. One was near two nature reserves. The verdict is due on June 17.