Ace of Base Star Must pay 70,000 Kronas

GÖTEBORG. Jonas Berggren, a star from the popgroup Ace of Base, was sentenced to pay 70,000 kronas in fines for tearing up a boat bridge outside his house in Långedrag. His lawyer sees this as a half victory. "The prosecutor demanded twice as much."
   The court didn't want to take a stand on whether Jonas Berggren's own bridge can stay or if he has to build what he has torn up. That will be decided in Vattendomstolen("water court"?) sometime this spring.

Will you appeal?
   "This whole case has been so heated that it can be better not to appeal," says Berggren's lawyer. Jonas Berggren himself didn't want to comment on the sentence yesterday.

Sued by his neighbors
   One of the neighbors that sued him is Elinor Hartung who has lived on the island since 1970. She compared Jonas tearing up the bridge to "raping my daughter". After the sentence she said, "Of course he was sentenced because of his violent act. I've grown up on this bridge. I've been here since I was five years old and all sea life started here."
   In 1995 Jonas bought the house with a bridge and a place for a boat in Långedrag. Next to his bridge there was an older bridge that was owned by a bridge association. But the bridge was too small for his 20 meter speedboat Marilyn. He tried to get the association to move their bridge. In 1996 he had enough and tore it up himself with a friend. The association sued him.
   In the court Jonas Berggren said, "It feels like it's more ok to fight with me because I'm a public person. I think that's bad. But the most important thing is that I know everything I've done is right.

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