1 week ago
Last Updated:April 09, 2025, 10:08 IST
The couple, behind the popular Stedsans retreat in southern Sweden, allegedly vanished without notice, deserting animals and leaving a significant environmental disaster in their wake.
Danish couple Flemming Hansen and Mette Helbaek once ran a popular eco-friendly resort, Stedsans, in Sweden. (Instagram)
A Danish couple, Flemming Hansen and Mette Helbaek, who once ran a popular eco-friendly resort in Sweden, have been found living in Guatemala after allegedly fleeing the country and leaving behind 158 barrels of human waste.
The couple, known for their environment-friendly retreat, Stedsans in Halland, southern Sweden, are reported to have left without warning, abandoning animals and creating a major environmental hazard.
Their staff claimed that several animals, including ducks, died as a result of the couple leaving them outside during the night and that other animals were abandoned.
Daniel Helsing, a local official in Hylte, told Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter, as quoted by The Guardian, “Voilà. Over 150 barrels of human shit." Local authorities have called it an “environmental crime".
Stedsans, a forest retreat consisting of 16 wooden cabins, was once lauded by social media influencers and reviewers as a luxurious nature getaway. The couple, who previously operated a popular rooftop restaurant in Copenhagen, had said they moved to Sweden in 2016 after feeling “the call of the wild".
But then, Stedsans was declared bankrupt in March. The couple allegedly owed millions to the Danish tax authorities before moving to Sweden and then racked up about 6 million SEK (around £470,000) in debt to Swedish tax authorities. They have since opened a second hotel in Guatemala.
On their website, the couple said they came very far with Stedsans but also realised that being soul-driven entrepreneurs on a mission in a country with some of the highest taxes in the world and relentless bureaucracy was an impossible task.
“When you read this, we have probably been declared bankrupt by the Swedish tax authorities. All we ever wanted was to be a part of creating a more beautiful planet," they added.
Authorities are currently looking into the legal and environmental infractions connected to the couple’s abrupt disappearance.
Location :Sweden
First Published:April 09, 2025, 10:08 IST
News world Danish Couple Running Eco-Resort Flees Sweden, Leaves Behind 158 Barrels Of Human Waste
