In Stolen, Robert Isaksson, played by Martin Wallström, is the antagonist who poses a threat to the Sámi community’s way of life.
Sweden’s indigenous Sámi community practices reindeer herding, which is under threat because of climate change.
Consequently, there are laws that prohibit certain activities in the region to protect the reindeer, which are crucial to the Sámi’s livelihood and culture.
However, some locals discriminate against the community and object to these laws, believing that the Sámi receive unfair advantages.
One of these individuals is a man named Robert Isaksson, who expresses his dislike for the community and their way of life in the most brutal ways.
A cold-blooded killer
Robert starts torturing and slaughtering the Sámi’s reindeer, even though it is illegal; it is a form of hate crime against them.
He never leaves evidence behind, which leads the police to report the killings as theft instead of illegal poaching.
He also cuts off the animals’ ears so they cannot be identified, preventing the Sámi from claiming compensation for theft.
At the same time, other locals accuse the Sámi of fighting amongst themselves and killing each other’s reindeer.
One day, Robert kills Elsa’s calf, Nástegállu, in cold blood, unaware that Elsa is hiding behind a bush and watching him.
When he finally senses Elsa’s presence, he threatens her. Elsa, scared of Robert, does not tell the police about what she saw that day.
Robert continues practicing animal cruelty and poaching for the next ten years. He is not caught until one day when Elsa and Mattias follow tracks in the snow near a carcass to his house.
Although there is blood in front of his barn, since the police know Robert, he convinces them that it is from a hare he shot earlier that day.
Even after that, Robert does not stop killing the reindeer, records himself torturing them, and keeps getting away with it.
When Elsa warns him to stop harming the animals, an angry Robert kills more of them and displays their skulls on the side of the road.
Soon after, Elsa catches him red-handed once more and tries to take pictures as evidence. That night, Robert goes to her house with a gun to threaten her.
Elsa calls the police, forcing Robert to flee, and due to lack of evidence, Robert is not charged. Elsa then decides to take matters into her own hands.
Elsa breaks into Robert’s barn and finds all the evidence she needs to prove that he is responsible for the reindeer slaughter.
However, Robert discovers that Elsa is at his barn. He reaches there and chases a retreating Elsa, resulting in Robert getting into an accident on a frozen lake.
Elsa wants Robert, who is trapped underneath his snowmobile, to admit to his crimes. When he refuses, she threatens him the way he had threatened her.
Eventually, Elsa tries to save Robert’s life, but she fails as the ice breaks and Robert drowns. Following his death, the police discover the evidence in his barn, and Robert is found guilty.
Also Read: Mattias Stuorbma: Stolen (2024) character explained