The man suspected of plowing a truck into a shopping center in Stockholm last week, killing four people, confessed to the attack on Tuesday.

"His position is that he admits to a terrorist crime and accepts therefore that he will be detained," Johan Eriksson the lawyer representing Uzbek national Rakhmat Akilov said in a court hearing to decide whether he should be kept in jail pending formal charges. The judge decided to remand the suspect into custody until May 11, unless prosecutors ask for an extension while they build the case.

Read: A sad weekend in Stockholm

Media reports had suggested that Akilov had sympathies for the so-called "Islamic State" (IS) terrorist organization. However, unlike similar vehicle attacks in Berlin, Nice, and London however, IS has not claimed the incident.

Since ramming the hijacked vehicle into Ahlens department store, claiming four lives and injuring 15, it has emerged that Akilov had been issued a deportation order, but evaded authorities and went underground. National police Commissioner Dan Eliasson said "there was nothing in the system that indicated (he) would do something like he did on Friday."

A second man was also detained over the attack, but has since been released.

Stockholm vows to remain tolerant

Sweden held a nationwide minute of silence for the victims on Monday, one Briton, a Belgian, and two Swedes, including an 11-year-old girl. A huge crowd assembled outside Ahlens department store, laying candles and flowers and thanking police officers, who have been widely praised for their swift response to the situation.

"We will never let terror prevail," said Mayor Karin Wanngard at an official memorial held in city hall and attended by Prime Minister Stefan Lofven and the royal family. "Stockholm will remain an open and tolerant city."

The purpose of Tuesday's hearing was to officially remand Akilov into custody pending formal charges. Authorities have asked for a similar hearing for the second suspect to take place no later than Wednesday.

'Lovefest' vigil in Stockholm after deadly attack Love united Some 20,000 people gathered on Sergels Torg plaza on Sunday. The "Lovefest" vigil was a sign of unity against terrorism, two days after a truck attack on a busy pedestrian street which killed four people. "Fear shall not reign. Terror cannot win," Stockholm mayor Karin Wanngard told the crowd, saying terrorism would be defeated with "kindness and openness."

'Lovefest' vigil in Stockholm after deadly attack Flower tributes A police vehicle outside Ahlens department store which was targeted in Friday's attacked was covered in flowers. "I think it's very important to stay strong together against anything that wants to change our society, which is based on democracy," said one Swede who gave her name as Marianne. "We talk, we don't fight."

'Lovefest' vigil in Stockholm after deadly attack Love not hate Among the thousands of people at Sunday's vigil were placards proclaiming love and protesting against terrorism. This one reads: "Love for all - hate toward no one." Another woman in the crowd wearing a headscarf held a sign reading: "We don't respond with fear, we respond with love."

'Lovefest' vigil in Stockholm after deadly attack A nation in shock The usually tranquil Scandinavian nation, which prides itself on its openness and tolerance, was deeply shocked by Friday's attack. Linking arms, under flags flying at half-mast, the crowd at Sunday's vigil held a minute's silence for the four victims.

'Lovefest' vigil in Stockholm after deadly attack Victims remembered Among the victims were two Swedish nationals. The Foreign Office in London has also confirmed that a British man, 41-year-old Chris Bevington, was among the dead, while the Belgian foreign ministry said a Belgian woman had been killed. Fifteen others were injured, four of whom remain in critical condition.



es/rt (AFP, dpa)