Belgian psychologist who worked with failed asylum seekers among Stockholm terror victims

 Belgian victim Mailys Dereymaeker, 31; One of the victims of the Stockholm terror attack
 Belgian victim Mailys Dereymaeker, 31; One of the victims of the Stockholm terror attack

A Belgian psychologist who worked with asylum seekers facing deportation was among the victims of the Stockholm truck attack, it emerged on Monday. 

Maïlys Dereymaeker, 31, was named by Belgian newspaper Nieuwsblad as one of the four people who were killed after failed asylum seeker Rakhmat Akilov ploughed a truck into a crowd in central Stockholm. 

Ms Dereymaeker, who was the mother of an 18-month old child, used to work as a psychologist in several Belgian immigration detention centres, Nieuwsblad reported.

In a bitter twist of irony, the newspaper said she often worked with failed asylum seekers. Akilov, a 39-year-old from Uzbekistan, had his asylum claim in Sweden rejected last year.  

The Swedish authorities have been strongly criticised for failing to carry out his deportation order, and the government has said it is reconsidering its policy. 

I ran over 10 people in the centre of Stockholm, now I have to get out of herewhat Rakhmat Akilov is reported to have said on WhatsApp

A British father, Chris Bevington,  41, has also been identified as one of the victims. He  worked in Stockholm as a director at the music streaming service Spotify. His family have described him as "a wonderful husband, son, father, brother and close friend to many."

Akilov chatted with Isil supporters before and after the attack, boasting in one message that he had "run over ten people", it has also been claimed.

Rakhmat Akilov, a failed asylum seeker from Uzbekistan, had been in contact with an extremist calling himself Abu Fatyma via the online messaging service WhatsApp, Swedish newspaper Expressen reported.

According to unverified screenshots of the WhatsApp messages published by Expressen, Akilov told Fatyma he was trying to build a bomb.

"How do I make explosives? Tomorrow I want to find a car and run it into a crowd," he is said to have written.

"Do not waste time in vain," Fatyma replied.

After hijacking a truck as it waited at a restaurant near Queen's Street, Akilov is said to have driven it at high speed and crashed it into the Ahlens department store, killing four people and injuring 15 others.

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Roughly an hour after the attack, Akilov is then reported to have told Fatyma: "I ran over 10 people in the centre of Stockholm, now I have to get out of here."

Fatyma responded: "Allahu Akbar, my brother, I cry, I love you." 

He then asked Akilov to send a video of the scene, which appears to have been the suspect's last WhatsApp message before he was arrested. 

Police cordon off the truck that crashed into the Ahlens department store Credit: JONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP
Smoke rising from the scene of the attack on Friday afternoon Credit: REUTERS
Police work at the scene in to the night after a truck slammed into a crowd Credit: ODD ANDERSEN/AFP

It came as Swedes questioned their country's welcoming immigration policies after learning that an asylum-seeker was the prime suspect in Stockholm's deadliest extremist attack in years. 

Police disclosed on Sunday that Akilov had been ordered to leave Sweden in December because his request for a residence permit was rejected six months earlier.

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Instead, he allegedly went underground, eluding authorities' attempts to track down and deport him until a hijacked beer truck raced down a pedestrian street and rammed into an upscale department store on Friday.

"It makes me frustrated," Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven told Swedish news agency TT on Sunday.

 

British father Chris Bevington, who was killed in the Stockholm attack

Spotify founder Daniel Ek told of his shock that his colleague had died in a "senseless attack". In a statement posted online, he said:

"Chris has been a member of our band for over five years. He has had a great impact on not just the business but on everyone who had the privilege to know and work with him.

"There are no words for how missed he will be or for how sad we all are to have lost him like this.

"Whilst this terrible news is sinking in, our primary focus is on supporting the family and loved ones of Chris in any way we possibly can.

"I am as deeply saddened and upset as all of you that something like this could happen in Sweden.

"The only light in this deeply tragic moment is the outpouring of love, compassion and solidarity that we have seen from everyone.

"And that was exactly the kind of person Chris was as well. We will greatly miss you Chris. Rest in peace my friend."

Of the other three people who died two were Swedish, and one was a 31-year-old woman who had been living in Halle, Belgium.