Quiet in Class is a three-part documentary series that premiered on HBO Max on September 29, 2025. Produced by Alaska Film & TV and executive produced by Karin Moreno, it uncovers Sweden’s largest known child abuse scandal at the Internationella Engelska Skolan in Karlstad. The series uses survivor interviews, police records, and unreleased documents to detail how a youth leader abused over 150 children over eight years, from around 2015 to 2023, despite repeated warnings starting in 2017.
Early warnings and unheeded reports are the main topics of Episode 1, the police raid and arrest in 2023 are covered in Episode 2, and the school’s cover-up and fallout are examined in Episode 3. According to the true story, a private school system’s institutional negligence allowed the perpetrator to continue filming children and posting child p*rnography online by ignoring the concerns of parents and students. A warning from another convicted abuser that resulted in blackmail is one startling component. Viewers can watch the documentary streaming on HBO Max.
Quiet in Class: The perpetrator and the abuse
The scandal centers on a youth leader at the Internationella Engelska Skolan in Karlstad, a private school for grades 4-9. Employed in a role involving after-school activities, he secretly filmed and photographed students over eight years. The material, often captured during everyday school situations like recreation time, was later manipulated into child p*rnography and shared online, including on dark websites. Police later found thousands of files during a raid.
The victims were mostly young boys aged 10-12, with over 150 affected in total. The abuse included inappropriate physical contact and fixation on certain children, but much of it was covert filming without their knowledge. The perpetrator admitted to the offenses after his arrest. This case highlights vulnerabilities in school environments where trusted staff have unsupervised access to children.
Swedish authorities described it as one of the country’s most extensive child pornography cases. The school, part of a larger chain emphasizing a safe learning space, faced scrutiny for allowing the individual to remain in his position despite his behavior raising red flags. Details emerged from court records and police statements used in the documentary Quiet in Class.
Ignored warnings and systemic failures
Warnings about the youth leader’s behavior began as early as 2017, six years before his arrest. At least seven separate reports came from students, parents, and even an external source. These included complaints of inappropriate touching, unusual attention to young boys, and other concerning actions during school activities. One notable warning came from another convicted pedophile, an entrepreneur from a different city, who contacted a local newspaper, the school, and the perpetrator himself after discovering related material online.
This led to blackmail and further abuses, as the two collaborated briefly. Despite these alerts, school leaders dismissed them, citing a lack of concrete evidence or prioritizing the institution’s reputation. An internal review later admitted that some harassment reports in 2021 were handled per routine but not fully investigated under legal duties.
The external investigation commissioned by the school found that earlier detection was unlikely due to the crime’s hidden nature, but recommended better procedures for staff assessments and harassment workflows. This points to broader issues in Sweden’s private education sector, where profit models may influence safety protocols. The documentary Quiet in Class includes audio from meetings where complaints were downplayed.
The Investigation and Arrest
The breakthrough was reached in 2023 when police got tips on child p*rnography involving the school. A raid of the perpetrator’s residence and the school saw thousands of obscene files, which verified the abuse. The youth leader was apprehended in May 2023 on suspicion of serious child p*rnography crimes. He confessed to secretly recording fully dressed students and manipulating the pictures for p*rnographic use away from school grounds. The inquiry entailed analyzing digital evidence, statements by the victim, and school records.
By 2024, the trial proceeded with lawyers representing over 150 victims, resulting in a conviction for aggravated child p*rnography crimes and a lengthy prison sentence. Police officers involved described the scale as shocking, with material distributed online for years. The arrest followed ignored warnings, including one from another abuser who had blackmailed the perpetrator.
Swedish authorities coordinated with international experts due to the online distribution. The school’s crisis team activated support immediately after police contact, but the documentary reveals how prior inaction prolonged the harm. This phase exposed the extent of the betrayal, with victims learning details only after the raid.
Aftermath and Calls for Change
Following the 2023 arrest, the school denied prior knowledge of the warnings and commissioned an external crisis manager for a review. His report criticized the culture of silence and negligence, but was not released publicly until featured in Quiet in Class. The institution provided crisis support, including extra counselors and a hotline, and an independent probe concluded that earlier detection was improbable while suggesting routine improvements like IT monitoring for p*rnography.
Government investigations into private school oversight started, enrollment fell, and families filed lawsuits. The scandal highlighted the need for improved reporting procedures in profit-driven educational systems and spurred national conversations about child protection laws in Sweden. Families and victims related tales of trauma, threats of blackmail, and a decline in confidence in the government.
Advocacy groups like BRIS endorsed the series for highlighting survivor voices. The perpetrator no longer works at the school, and the principals apologized for the impact while focusing on rebuilding. Broader reforms include training for school leaders on harassment duties. The case serves as a reminder of the importance of listening to children in educational settings.
The Quiet in Class scandal stands as a grim reminder that predators thrive in the silence institutions enable. While the perpetrator faces justice in a prison cell, the true sentence for the survivors is a lifetime of healing process that can only begin with the unwavering commitment to listen, believe, and protect, so such a failure can never be repeated.
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Hilfa, Senior Writer at Hilvaro, excels in pop culture journalism. She crafts engaging content on movies, TV, & trends, fueled by her love for storytelling & entertainment.
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