A man in Sweden is under investigation for allegedly prostituting his wife to more than 120 clients.

BarcelonaSwedish prosecutors are investigating a man for allegedly prostituting his wife for years and selling her sexual services to more than 120 men, according to public broadcaster SVT. The accused, a former high-ranking member of the Hells Angels organized crime group, has been in custody since October after his wife filed a complaint. The man, being investigated for aggravated pimping, advertised the services on various websites and received payment in return. "We are talking about large-scale pimping, and it involved the callous exploitation of the complainant," prosecutor Ida Annerstedt told the public broadcaster. The formal indictment against the man, who is in his sixties, will be filed on March 13, and the trial is scheduled to begin the following week at the Ångermanland District Court in northern Sweden, where the couple lived. According to Swedish media, the clients came from various parts of Sweden.

The investigation against the man has been ongoing for some time, and SVT had previously reported that around 30 men could be brought to justice on suspicion of buying sex. The prosecutor stated that the more than 120 identified clients will not be included as defendants in the trial, as it would take too long to investigate all the cases, but that they could be charged in a second phase of the case. In Sweden, both pimping and paying for sex are criminal offenses. The Scandinavian country wasthe first in the world to criminalize customersAnd not the prostitutes, whose 1999 law prohibits the purchase of sexual services. The country recently amended its Penal Code to toughen penalties, so clients can be sentenced to up to a year in prison. According to the network, the situation may have dragged on for about three and a half years, until the woman filed a complaint with the police. The couple is now in divorce proceedings. The accused, who maintains his innocence, was investigated two years ago for abusing his wife. At that time, the investigation was closed, but it has now been reopened. The man had previously been convicted of assault and unlawful coercion, among other charges, and served a five-month prison sentence. He is also involved in a case of alleged serious financial crime, currently on trial, in which he is accused, among other things, of serious accounting fraud for failing to record approximately €280,000 in revenue from his company.

"The Swedish Pelicot case"

The Minister for Gender Equality, Nina Larsson, has compared the case with Gisèle Pelicot's, who was raped for years after her husband drugged her and offered her to about 50 people. "Men should stop buying and selling women's bodies. Media reports about the 'Swedish Pelicot case' are shocking and disgusting," she wrote to X.