'Extremely calm': Friend recalls Kiwi linked to Sweden shooting as girls remain critical
Warning: This article contains disturbing content
A long-term New Zealand friend of Maui Koopu has spoken about the man he knew, as Swedish police investigate the shooting of two girls understood to be Koopu’s daughters.
Swedish sources have named Koopu as the man at the centre of the police investigation into the shooting in Alvesta, Sweden on Saturday (local time).
One of the girls is reported to be fighting for her life in hospital; the other has critical injuries. Koopu was found dead near the house after the incident.
Swedish newspaper Smalandsposten reported police had begun looking into allegations last year that Koopu had abused his former wife, but that investigation closed after one month.
Koopu’s long-term friend told the Herald he met Koopu in the mid-1990s while they were on boatbuilding apprenticeships.
The man, who did not want to be named, said the man he knew was “extremely calm”.
Maui Koopu lived in Alvesta, Sweden with his now ex-wife and two daughters.
“Once we completed our apprenticeships, we all headed overseas, as many good New Zealand boatbuilders did back then. We worked in Gothenburg, Sweden, building the America’s Cup yacht for Victory Challenge, and this is where he met his wife.”
He said Koopu trained as a helicopter pilot before moving to Sweden.
“Unfortunately, since then we have only kept in touch through messages.”
The municipality of Alvesta, Sweden. Photo / Google Maps
Koopu moved to Sweden in 2013 with his wife and two daughters. He built their family home in the small village of Lekaryd.
Case papers with the Vaxjo District Court in Sweden, seen by the Herald, showed his wife filed for divorce in June. Koopu twice appealed the application – once in August to the Court of Appeal, then again to the Supreme Court in December. He was denied both requests.
The couple’s divorce was reportedly finalised last Thursday, just two days before the attack. The divorce papers confirmed the couple had been living apart for more than two years, which met the criteria for granting a divorce judgment.
Neither parent requested dissolution of the joint custody of the children.
The family home in the village of Lekaryd in Alvesta, Sweden built by Maui Koopu. Photo / Google Maps
The Municipal Council of Alvesta told the Herald the matter was “currently being investigated by the police”.
The Herald has approached Koopu’s family for comment.
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