The Breakthrough (2025) s01e01 Episode Script

1
ON TUESDAY 19TH OCTOBER 2004
A MURDER INVESTIGATION BEGAN
IT WOULD BECOME
THE SECOND-LARGEST CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION
IN SWEDISH HISTORY
[man] The big hand.
When that one goes
all the way round, yeah?
The little hand moves.
And when it gets to here,
this day will end.
And then what?
[inhales, exhales]
A new day begins.
Always?
Yeah. Always.
A new day begins, again, and then again,
forever and ever.
You see?
Time goes forward.
Okay, Adnan. Yalla.
[kisses]
Get some sleep now.
[ominous music playing]
[keyboard clacking]
MUST KILL
[door slams, echoes]
[tea members shouting]
[sniffs, exhales]
[man] Looking good, John.
-Getting ready for your third Olympics?
-[breathy chuckles]
[woman] Adnan, Maya, wake up now. Yalla.
We've overslept.
Maya, wake up. Yalla.
Adan, habibi, yalla.
You'll be late for school.
Did you sleep well?
Mm.
-I'll make some coffee.
-Mm. Thanks.
-Maya, you have violin after school.
-[Maya] Okay.
What does the clock say, Dad?
Look, it says… just after half seven.
Yalla! You must go to school, Adan!
[both laughing]
[Adnan's dad kisses]
[John laughs] Ah.
-Cute.
-He is.
-All good with you?
-I'm fine.
-Got to run. See ya.
-Take care. Bye.
Can you ring Samuel
to talk about Christmas?
Uh, I thought that we'd get
an extra bed for the guest room
so they'll have space.
Great. That sounds good.
Must go now, see you tonight.
Have a good day.
[Adnan] Come on!
[Adnan's dad] Maya, yalla!
-You go on ahead. I'm not ready yet.
-Okay.
Bye, Daddy.
Bye, Adnan.
[door closes]
[ominous music intensifies]
[Adnan shrieks painfully]
[woman] What are you doing? Stop! Stop it!
[woman cries in pain]
[painful crying continues]
[wet stabbing]
[painful cries weaken]
[crying stops]
[ominous music fades]
[breathing heavily]
Here you go, love.
Mm, thanks.
[John exhales]
[woman] Mm, lovely. [laughs] Thank you.
[items clattering]
[vehicle door closing]
[radio beeping]
[sirens ringing]
[sirens fade into distance]
[indistinct chatter]
[ominous music builds]
[music fades]
[telephone rings]
Hello?
Yeah, I was just on my way.
What?
Okay, I'm coming right now.
[poignant theme music playing]
[theme music fades]
[radio presenter] …Political scientists
and oil prices are increasingly volatile.
And now with further coverage of
the ongoing diplomatic wrangle,
our special correspondent brings you
an exclusive report…
[officer 1] Hey, John.
Thanks.
Two stabbings. A woman,
conscious and being rushed to hospital,
and then a boy.
I tried to revive him but, uh, I couldn't.
Pronounced dead at one minute to eight.
Any witnesses?
[officer 1] Yeah, that woman there.
She was cycling past. She saw everything.
Just there? Okay.
-Have you gone door to door?
-We're understaffed.
-Okay, so can you get on it?
-Yeah, sure.
-And we're also gonna need a canine unit.
-Yep. Yeah, on it.
[radio beeps]
[officer 1] I need more officers down here
to start knocking on doors,
and we'll need a canine unit too.
[John] It's John.
You have to call an emergency meeting.
-I can be with you in an hour.
-[officer 2] John?
-Hold on.
-I think we found the murder weapon.
[John] Send it straight to forensics
as a matter of priority.
-Yeah.
-Thanks. Are you there?
We need all available resources.
Hey, Samuel, it's Dad.
How are you doing down there?
Yeah, we're doing good, yeah.
Uh…
No, it looks like something's happened
out in the street.
Well, anyway,
your mum and I are really very happy
about this Christmas, seeing you.
-[doorbell rings]
-Mm.
[officer 3] Hello, sir.
There's been an assault outside,
and we're asking local residents
if they've seen anything.
No. Well, I saw
the police lights and stuff, but…
My wife, Gunilla, left for work
a while ago. She might've seen something.
BOY
GUNILLA
[officer 3] I need you to come with us.
-What?
-[door opens]
Maya?
[Mum sighs]
-Maya?
-[Maya breathes shakily]
-Maya?
-[Adnan's dad] What's happened?
[teacher] The police are on their way.
-Police?
-Police? But why police?
Maya?
-What's wrong?
-[Adnan's dad] What's happened.
[sobs]
Maya, what's wrong?
[mobile phone ringing]
-Hey, darling.
-[woman] Hey.
I missed your call earlier.
Are you all right?
Yes. Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry.
Baby's not here yet.
I heard on the radio
that one of the victims was a little boy.
-Yeah.
-That's so awful.
-Yeah.
-Have you arrested anyone?
No, not yet, but we have an eyewitness
and we have the murder weapon,
we think, so it'll be quick.
Oh, okay.
Are you leading the investigation?
-Yeah.
-Is that a good idea?
The baby will be here any day now.
Come on, it's a murder.
It's gonna be full-on.
Yeah, I know that.
-I know. It'll be quick, my love, okay?
-Okay.
Just a hectic couple of days,
so I'm gonna be a bit late tonight, okay?
Mm. Okay.
Yeah, good, uh…
There's nothing for you to worry about.
-It's fine.
-Say hi to the team.
So, Gunilla sadly passed away
a short while ago,
which makes this a double murder.
Did Gunilla and the boy know each other?
Don't think so,
but we do have some evidence
and a witness who saw the culprit.
We have other information too.
So, considering all this,
I think we have a good chance
of catching the perpetrator.
Don't forget that time is of the essence
over the next few hours
and will decide if we actually succeed.
Okay? Let's go.
[overlapping indistinct chatter]
What did you see, Karin,
when you got there?
I saw over the road this man who, uh…
who was…
punching this woman in the stomach.
And… And I saw…
him then turn around.
And he sprang right towards me.
Can you describe him at all?
Something you noticed?
[exhales]
I, uh…
He wore dark…
clothes and a hat.
-He wore dark clothes and a hat.
-[Karin] Yes.
Mm.
Okay, uh… What did he look like?
Uh…
He, uh…
Um…
[John] He what?
Hang on, this is weird,
'cause I can't quite…
[sighs] I can't…
I can't see his face at all.
[John] But you did see his face?
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I did see it
because I stared right at him.
Right at him.
And the colour of his skin?
It's so weird 'cause I saw it.
I saw his face, I know I did.
I… I saw it, but I just can't see it.
Um… I cannot see it.
[uneasy music playing]
[door closes]
Uh…
Hey. Hey, Samuel.
[exhales sharply] It's your dad.
[restrained breaths]
[reporter 1] In Linköping,
an eight-year-old boy was stabbed to death
on his way to school in assault
that took place near the city centre.
[reporter 2]
Sorrow and distress in Linköping
after the double murder this morning.
And the killer is still at large.
Here are the latest tip-offs.
Thanks.
[telephone rings]
Yeah, this is Francy Arnesson,
Linköping police.
[telephone rings]
Lollo Jansson, Linköping police station.
[reporter 2] The attack occurred
just before 8am
in what's described as a quiet,
residential area in central Linköping.
It's too early to tell
whether it was a random attack
or if there are other explanations.
[John] I understand that this is…
that this is difficult.
But I do need to ask you some questions.
[Adnan's mum sobs]
[John] Can you remember
what time Adnan left home?
[sobs]
He should've left
at half seven for school.
But he was running a bit late.
[John] Okay.
Um, did he usually go the same way
to school every morning?
-[Adnan's mum] Yes. [sobs]
-He did.
[sobbing, sniffs]
Uh, I've also got
this picture to show you.
Do you recognise this woman?
-No.
-No.
Saad? Can you take a look too?
Do you recognise her?
Uh… is that, uh, the other one?
Yeah.
-[Adnan's mum sobs]
-I don't know.
I don't… why anyone would…
[Saad sobs]
[both sobbing]
Has anyone threatened you or Gunilla?
Uh…
Absolutely not.
So, no old conflicts or…
No. What are you saying?
I'm not saying that you had any, but uh…
Um… but she taught Swedish
to immigrants though, didn't she?
-[man] Yes.
-Could anyone there, um…?
No, no, no.
Everyone…
They all liked Gunilla.
She always got
a lot of presents from her students.
Um…
So… So what do I do now?
[melancholy piano music playing]
[Maya sobs]
[piano music continues]
[panting]
Good job!
National team again?
Just clearing the head.
I don't want to intrude.
I just wanna say that…
that everyone around here feels good
that you're in charge of this case.
We feel safe.
Ta.
I mean, not everyone here
is an Olympic athlete.
[sniffs] Come on, Ante!
Pick up the pace now!
I hope you catch that bloody lunatic.
[sombre music playing]
[school bell rings]
Have you had a think about
what we spoke of yesterday?
The awful thing that happened?
Yeah, Oskar?
[Oskar] My little brother played football
with the boy who died.
-Oh, I'm sorry to hear that.
-[Oskar] Yeah.
Uh, Basse?
[Basse] Why would someone kill a child?
[sighs] We don't know.
[radio reporter 1] The police don't know
the motive behind the assault,
but they believe they have found
the murder weapon close to the scene.
[radio reporter 2] John Sundin
of the Linköping police
had this to say yesterday.
[John] We have prepared ourselves
for all possible scenarios,
but in my opinion,
we are close to an arrest.
Lollo, so do you have the knife then?
[Lollo] Uh, yeah. It's a butterfly.
They're sold in a lot of places,
uh, but mostly online.
And I have tried to trace
this particular model,
but no luck so far,
so it's likely purchased abroad, so, uh…
And the hat was found
in a rubbish bin two blocks away
and it had a small, leather label
that reads "Fashion Wear Points."
And I've spoken to their sales rep.
It retails in a chain of petrol stations
all over the Nordics.
-And how many of them are circulating?
-Two hundred thousand.
[John] Okay.
We'll start looking at
petrol stations in Linköping
[John] Yeah.
And as we have the murderer's blood
from the knife,
we've sent it for DNA analysis
and we'll know
if he's in any of our databases.
-Great.
-[Francy] Mm-hmm.
Okay then, in here…
In here are all the tips that came in.
And I am now convinced
the murderer is in here somewhere.
Okay?
Now, you all do your job.
Every second and every minute. It's vital.
[coach] Talk to each other.
Don't take the shot!
Come on, mate!
Keep going, now, keep going!
And think about it, all right?
New ball. New ball coming in!
Go after it, Ante!
Ante!
Ante, you have to keep going.
Attack, fall back. Okay?
-[Ante] Yeah.
-Great. Carry on.
Come in, come in, inside!
Deeper, Ante. You gotta get in there!
How could I get that?!
-[teammate 1] Come on.
-You should…
-[overlapping team chatter]
-Ante!
[teammate 1] Switch on, Ante.
What you playing at, mate?
-[teammate 2] Move. Let's go, boys.
-[teammate 1] Come on!
-[teammate 1] Okay. I'm outta here.
-[teammate 2] All right, mate. See ya.
[door screeches open]
[teammate 2] Later, boys.
-[coach] See you Saturday, all right?
-[teammate 2] Bye.
[door screeches open]
[coach] How are you?
Uh, I'm okay.
-[coach] Are you sure?
-Yeah.
-I can tell something's wrong.
-Yeah?
-You're not focused.
-I really have to get home.
[coach] Hey, we're a team.
You can't just stand around--
Yeah, all right! I must go home and study.
Look.
You can talk to me
if there's something wrong.
[sighs]
[ominous music playing]
[dog barks]
[barking continues]
So, he heads right in your direction,
and you see his face.
Can you see his features?
Yeah, yeah,
but it's… all… all blocked out.
Your witness account
is extremely important.
I know that. I do understand.
-I know. Just… What should I do, then?
-Okay.
[Karin] I'm constantly racking my brain.
It's all I think about!
[woman] After having reviewed
and analysed the wounds,
the crime scene,
we've made a few assumptions
about the perpetrator's characteristics
and motives.
It's probably a male, John.
Uh, struggles with mental health.
Fifteen to thirty years old.
Very familiar with the local area.
His victims were chosen at random.
The killer probably suffers from
severe anxiety
with a pent-up need to kill.
Will he do it again?
In all likelihood, he will.
[pensive music playing]
[exhales]
[music continues]
[man exhales]
How are you?
-Remember anything?
-No.
[man] Hm.
Nothing?
[sighs] Do you want anything?
Cuppa tea, sarnie?
No.
-[man] You sure, love?
-Please, will you leave me alone?
[pensive music intensifies]
DNA SAMPLE FROM BLOOD STAIN
[music fades]
[office walla]
[John] This is the crime scene.
We believe that
the killer knows the area well,
and this is corroborated
by the criminal profile.
Our theory, therefore,
is that he lives close to the crime scene.
-These are the tip-offs that came in.
-That's great.
So, everyone,
we are after a man, 15 to 30.
Check psychiatric clinics.
Uh, Francy and I will talk
to everyone who's sought help.
-[John] That's great, thanks.
-Yep.
And we're also looking into young men
who have committed similar crimes,
knife assaults or unprovoked attacks.
Unfortunately, we've no matches
for the blood on the knife.
So, I suggest we make a public appeal
and ask men from 15 to 30
to volunteer to come in for a swab.
John, do we have the authorisation?
We'll have to get it
so we can catch the murderer.
[sombre music playing]
Hello there. Take a card
and go see my colleague, please.
Thanks for coming in.
Just fill in your details for me.
Just fill in your details there.
Open your mouth.
[John] You've been convicted
of a violent crime.
I haven't had a fight
since primary school.
-[John] Really?
-Yeah.
Two years ago you were convicted
of assaulting an officer, weren't you?
[man] You think I did it?
[John] You have previous convictions
of carrying a knife.
[laughs] That's insane, totally.
I'm not a nutter.
-Okay.
-[man] I wouldn't do that.
I didn't go out all day.
Uh, I didn't go out till, uh, 5pm, 4pm.
So you're not going to say anything, then?
No. Just find the wanker who did this
'cause people are scared to leave their
-[music fades]
-[exhales defeatedly]
[office walla]
[Francy] John?
Two hundred and seventy-six men
aged 15 to 30 have been swabbed so far.
Okay. And there are 17,706 here.
Still a way to go.
-[mobile phone beeping]
-Oh.
Shit.
FROM: ANNA
DID YOU FORGET THE MIDWIFE APPOINTMENT?
Here, the list of the people who've
sought help at the psychiatric clinic.
Ooh, so many.
[pensive music playing]
[pensive music continues]
[reporter] As far as the police are aware,
the victims didn't know each other.
They haven't been able to establish
a connection between the boy and the woman
other than that
they lived in the same area
and that they both used that route
at the same time,
to get to school and work, every morning.
Today, almost a month after the murders,
there's still no suspect.
The likelihood of the perpetrator
attacking again is unknown,
but the police have issued a warning
to the public to remain vigilant.
[music continues]
[music intensifies]
[music fades]
[doorbell rings]
Thanks for seeing me.
I've a few more questions for you, okay?
And some of them might be
a bit distressing, but, uh…
we need answers to them sadly.
So, I… I hope you'll bear with me, okay?
You see, Adnan…
He, uh…
Adnan sustained stab wounds,
uh, in his rear.
Is that something that
you think could have, uh…
some kinda religious or…
or cultural connection?
I… I don't see… Why are you asking us?
I have to ask this question
to rule out other…
No. I have never heard
about anything like that. [inhales]
[Saad] This has nothing to do with…
uh… religion or anything like that, it…
Uh, y-y-ou…
Why would you even ask that of us?
Ye… Ye… Yep. I do apologise,
but it's my job. I… I'm sorry.
It was some sick, some evil…
fucking maniac
or racist, even, I don't know.
The person who did this
had nothing to do with our family
or anything like that. Understood?
[Adnan's mum]
Do you have any more questions?
No, not just now.
Look, I've brought with me…
Um…
We've finished with
some of Adnan's things.
[melancholy music playing]
[Adnan's mum sobs]
Sorry for disturbing you.
[sobbing continues]
[Saad sniffs]
-Did you think of something?
-[sniffs]
[sobs] You gotta help us.
Help…
Hey.
I swear to you…
I'll catch Adnan's murderer.
Okay. Thanks.
[keyboard clacking]
WITNESS HYPNOSIS
WITNESS REMEMBERED UNDER HYPNOSIS
-[John] Sorry for showing up at this hour.
-[man] It's okay.
-[John] Is Karin at home? Thanks.
-[man] She is. Come in.
She's just through here.
[footsteps approaching]
[John] Hi, Karin.
I'm sorry for just turning up like this.
[clears throat]
How are you?
Good, thanks.
I want you to try hypnosis.
-Hypnosis?
-To help you remember.
Uh, hypnosis?
The police do that kind of thing?
[John] Yeah, it's completely safe.
There's someone in Stockholm
who assists the police with this.
[man] It sounds a little…
Of course I will do it.
Thank you.
That's good.
[leaves rustle in the wind]
[hypnotherapist inhales, exhales]
Karin.
You are now in a deep sleep.
But your body is still in this room.
When you're ready,
you can start telling us
about what happened that morning.
Describe what you see,
as though it's happening right now.
I'm cycling a different route.
A steep hill.
[ominous music playing]
Had a hot shower before.
It is cold as I ride.
And then I hear it.
A cry.
[Gunilla cries in pain]
[hypnotherapist]
Okay. Then what do you do?
I get out the saddle and start walking…
forward…
and I turn the corner to the next street.
I follow the scream.
And then I see them.
[hypnotherapist] And what do you see now?
The back of a man pounding his…
his arm…
deep into the stomach
of this poor woman again and again.
No, no…
[inhale sharply]
No…
[hypnotherapist]
So, can you see how they're moving?
No…
No, no, no.
No, no.
-[hypnotherapist] Uh…
-No.
-Karin, what's happening?
-No.
No, I was gonna…
Why didn't I go over and help at all?
I didn't do that!
Why didn't I? I should've done.
[hypnotherapist] Relax, it's okay.
No, you didn't run to them.
It was too dangerous.
-[breathing heavily]
-You're safe here.
-Breathe.
-[panicked exhale]
-Karin, breathe.
-[panicked exhale]
-Focus on breathing.
-[exhales]
There.
There, it's okay.
Good, good.
[Karin sniffs]
[hypnotherapist] Breathe.
[exhales calmly]
[hypnotherapist] You decide what you want
to share. When you are ready, you begin.
[breathes loudly]
If you feel discomfort,
you can always return here.
What do you see now?
He is wearing a hat.
Uh… It is…
a small hat, a beanie.
[hypnotherapist] Focus on the hat.
What colour is it?
It's dark. Black, I think.
Blue?
[hypnotherapist] And below the hat?
His eyes.
[hypnotherapist]
Okay. What do you see in his eyes?
[Karin] I can see his face now.
[poignant piano outro music playing]
[music fades]