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Kim Wall was a Swedish freelance journalist who had travelled the world from her home and worked for various publication houses like The Guardian, The New York Times, Slate, and Time.
Wiki/Biography
Kim Wall was born on 22 March 1987 (age 30 years; at time of death) in Trelleborg, Scania, Sweden. Her zodiac sign is Aries. Kim Wall completed her schooling in Malmo, Sweden, and she pursued her bachelor’s degree in International relations from the London School of Economics. Further, she attended Columbia University in New York City and obtained a dual master’s degree in journalism and international relations.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 5″
Eye Color: Black
Hair Color: Golden brown
Family & Ethnicity
Parents & Siblings
Kim Wall’s father’s name is Joachim Wall, and her mother’s name is Ingrid Wall. Kim has a younger brother, Tom Wall.
Boyfriend
At the time of death, Kim Wall in a relationship with Ole Stobbe, a game and interaction designer. The couple was living in Copenhagen, Denmark and they had planned to move to Beijing to start a new life.
Career
After completing her degree from Columbia University, Kim Wall decided to work as a freelance journalist and travelled the world to cover different stories- from Uganda to Cuba to New York City. Her work was specialised in the field of identity, gender or subcultures. She even did several stories on social injustice themes. She has written articles on the underground internet providers in Cuba who download information for people at a price for Harper’s Magazine, about a couple who lives alone on a tiny island for The Guardian, and about the Shanghai Disneyland for Time.
Kim Wall during one of her trips to cover a story
Death
On 10 August 2017, Kim was preparing for her farewell party with her Danish designer boyfriend, Ole Stobbe when she received a text message from Danish entrepreneur Peter Madsen, who invited her to interview him on his self-made submarine UC3 Nautilus. Wall decided to ditch the party for two hours and joined him on his submarine; however, the submarine never returned to the harbour and Stobbe decided to file a missing report about Kim. The next morning, the submarine was sighted in Køge Bay near the Drogden lighthouse. Police arrested Peter Madsen on 11 August 2017 when the submarine was found and he said nothing about Kim Wall’s whereabouts. On 21 August 2017, a cyclist reported Kim Wall’s torso that had washed up on a beach in the southwest region of Amager. The post-mortem examination report showed that the torso was stabbed 15 times, mostly in the groin. On 6 October, Swedish Police conducted a search operation along with police divers who found two plastic bags in Køge Bay containing Wall’s head, legs, clothes and a knife.
Peter Madsen getting inside a cop car after his arrest
After his arrest, Peter Madsen gave a statement saying that he had dropped Kim Wall off on land, but he then admitted to dumping her body in the sea after she had died in an accident while she was in the submarine. Later, throughout the hearings, he changed his statements several times saying that she had died because of a head injury and then said that she had died after inhaling poisonous exhaust fumes that might have entered the submarine. The post-mortem reports showed no signs of head injury or presence of poisonous fumes in her lungs. Peter Madsen was charged with murder, indecent handling of a corpse, and sexual assault on 16 January 2018, and on 25 April 2018, he was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Police and coroner taking the torso of Kim Wall to the hospital
Facts/Trivia
- In 2016, Kim Wall was awarded the Hansel Mieth Prize for Best Digital Reportage for “Exodus” a media report on climate change and nuclear weapons testing in the Marshall Islands.
- Kim Wall’s family and friends started a funding program, Kim Wall Memorial Fund, in her memory to fund female reporters who are working to cover crucial and moving stories. On 11 August, every year, Kim Wall’s parents and the fund organises a memorial run where they ask people to run or walk a few kilometres in honour of Kim Wall.
People attending the ‘Run for Kim’ memorial run in Trelleborg, Sweden
- In October 2017, Kim Wall was nominated for the Prix Europa’s Outstanding Achievement Award “Journalist of the Year”.
- On 9 November 2018, Kim Wall’s parents published a book titled “Boken om Kim Wall: När orden tar slut” in her memory. Later, in 2020, the book was translated to English by Kathy Saranpa. The book was titled ‘A Silenced Voice.’
The book ‘A Silenced Voice’ written by Kim’s parents and translated by Kathy Saranpa
- A six-part Danish television series named Efterforskningen (The Investigation) was premiered on 28 September 2020. The series was created by Tobias Lindholm and it follows the criminal investigation of the case. The show does not feature Madsen or the crime itself, but it shows the work carried out by the investigating officers that lead to the conviction of Peter Madsen. Later, it was released on UK’s BBC Two, and HBO began showing it on 1 February 2021.