Last summer a 12-year-old girl named Luna was tied to a tree, raped, and almost strangled to death with her own shoelace by a 15-year-old Ethiopian culture-enricher in the Swedish town of Skellefteå. When the “youth” entered the country, his parents had registered his age as 13, which is why he was enrolled in school with girls of Luna’s age.
The near-strangulation deprived Luna’s brain of oxygen for a critical period before emergency personnel could reach her and begin treatment. Her ordeal has left her a near-vegetable, unable to move her limbs or speak. She is clearly aware of what has happened to her, however, and has endured unimaginable ongoing trauma. Her condition requires round-the-clock medical care.
See this article from Remix News (hat tip Reader from Chicago) for details on the incident that left Luna in such a gravely disabled condition.
The attack on Luna received relatively little attention last summer, but the girl’s aunt Emma recently went public with her case, and has garnered widespread public support, including donations that will help finance the necessary medical treatment and equipment to help mitigate her debilitated condition.
Many thanks to Gary Fouse for translating this article from Expressen:
Luna’s family on the big support: “Feel our thanks”
December 22, 2022
Just under a week has passed since Luna’s family chose to tell about the serious crime that has turned their lives upside down.
The support has been enormous — and with that comes the feeling of being less alone in their grief.
“You know who you are — feel our thanks,” says Luna’s aunt, Emma.
by Katrin Krantz
Staggering. Beyond all expectations.
That is how Luna’s aunt, Emma, describes the just under a week that has passed since they went out and told Luna’s story to Expressen.
Reactions have been strong. Many have reached out to the family.
“It has been hard to take in how big this has become. It feels like all of Sweden stood up and hugged us,” says Emma.
She could not have foreseen the wave of warmth and sympathy that came in the wake of the reporting.
“We in the family had an ambition that Luna would be given a voice. That she would not be hidden and forgotten in the statistics, and that we would pursue her case.”
They have now made contact with people who have cutting-edge competence and can give advice about, for example, Luna’s rehabilitation. In the text, Emma tells how Luna is happy to greet dogs, and many dog owners have reached out and offered canine companionship.
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