Peter Eggers as John and Mattias Nordkvist as Per in Netflix’s series ‘Breakthrough’ (2025).Photo:Courtesy of Netflix©
Courtesy of Netflix©
The Breakthroughfollows a double murder that took 16 years to solve — much like a real-life incident that occurred in Sweden in 2004.
“Police officers who refuse to give up, relatives who wanted answers and last but not least the genealogist who finally came up with the solution,” he said. “It is a terrible trauma that has affected the people and the city of Linköping and I want to respectfully tell about the attempts to move on from such trauma.”
So, what is the true story behindThe Breakthrough? Here’s everything to know about the real double murders that struck Sweden in 2004 — and why it took 16 years to find the killer.
IsThe Breakthrougha true story?
Peter Eggers as John, Annika Hallin as Karin and Magnus Mark as Björn in Netflix’s series ‘Breakthrough’ (2025).Courtesy of Netflix©
“This is the first criminal case in Europe that has been solved with genetic genealogy, and it is a case that has touched both of us, the city of Linköping and Sweden deeply,” the statement continued.
What happened in the real-life case ofThe Breakthrough?
Annika Hallin as Karin in Netflix’s series ‘Breakthrough’ (2025).Courtesy of Netflix©
Witnesses described the killer as being in his twenties, dressed in a beige knee-length jacket and blue or black woolen hat, and told police that he “did not run but strolled away from the murder scene,” per The Local Sweden.
As illustrated inThe Breakthrough, the murder weapon was believed to be a butterfly knife.
According toThe Guardian, the weapon was found at the scene alongside the suspect’s DNA and a bloody cap. But despite the clues, the case sat unsolved for years as investigators struggled to identify the killer.
How was the murder inThe Breakthroughsolved?
Peter Eggers as John in Netflix’s series ‘Breakthrough’ (2025).Courtesy of Netflix©
According toThe Guardian, new legislation was passed in January 2019 that enabled police to search for DNA matches on commercial genealogy websites. This development led law enforcement to collaborate with genealogists to reopen and continue investigating the cold case 16 years after the tragic event.
The genealogists interviewed and tested the DNA of thousands of people. After creating family trees, the results led investigators to a pair of brothers — as they did in the Netflix series — before they ultimately found their match, per a September 2020 report fromThe Nomad Today.
In June 2020, police identified a killer and released a statement that said they “received a match almost immediately,” perThe Guardian.
They added that “his DNA was taken and matched 100%,” as shown in the Netflix series.
Who was the real-life killer fromThe Breakthrough?
Mattias Nordkvist as Per in Netflix’s ‘Breakthrough’ (2025).Courtesy of Netflix©
Courtesy of Netflix©
After matching his DNA on a popular genealogy website, Daniel Nyqvist was identified as the killer. According toThe Guardian, Nyqvist — who was 21 at the time of the attack — admitted to police that he had obsessive thoughts about killing and chose the victims randomly.
Medical experts concluded he had suffered from a psychiatric disorder, which became his lawyer’s defense for rejecting the charge of premeditated murder, per the outlet.
Additionally,The Guardianreported that the killer said during the police interrogation that he never expected he would go unscathed for so many years.
“I remember that I didn’t brush my teeth because I was just going to die or get caught that day,” he said. “But I had to do it. I did it mostly on automatic.”
Nyqvist had been unemployed and living at his parent’s home during the murders and continued to live a quiet life near Linköping following the attack, perThe Guardian.
Who were the real-life victims fromThe Breakthrough?
Bahador Foladi as Saad in Netflix’s series ‘Breakthrough’ (2025).Courtesy of Netflix©
“Mohamad overslept and got up at about quarter past seven. He was worried about being late for school,” Ammouri’s brother Ali told the outlet. “My mum prepared a simple breakfast which he ate before he took his schoolbag and ran off.”
However, police prevented anybody from getting close enough to identify the body. Ammouri’s school then called his family to ask why he hadn’t arrived, per the outlet, which led them to find out the tragic news about their son.
“Just after nine we found out that our son had been killed,” Ammouri’s father told The Local Sweden. “He was radiantly happy and loved to joke with people. Why would anyone want to kill him? We have no enemies in the whole of Sweden.”
The 56-year-old woman was identified as Anna-Lena Svensson, who worked for an educational company and was on her way to work when she was killed, per the outlet. She and her husband had a 28-year-old daughter.
According to The Local Sweden, the victims did not know each other, and police did not believe there was any connection between them and the killer.
Where isThe BreakthroughkillerDaniel Nyqvist now?
Sixteen years after the attack, Nyqvist confessed to the crime and was convicted of murder in October 2020, perThe Local Sweden. According to the outlet, he was sentenced to psychiatric care after being found to have “committed the acts under the influence of a severe psychological disorder.”
source: people.com
