Kurt Wallander is a police inspector in the Swedish town of Ystad. Shortly after he has seen a young girl kill herself by self-immolation, he is called to investigate the murder of government minister Wetterstedt. He has been scalped. Wealthy business-man Carlman is murdered in the same fashion, and a serial killer is clearly responsible. Drunken ex-journalist Lars Magnusson points Wallander towards Sandin, a retired and corrupt cop, who admits that he once 'cleaned up' for both the dead men but will offer no more information. The next murder is that of an habitual ...

Inspector Wallander and his team investigate a murder and an unexplained death. They arrest 18 year old Sonja Hokberg after they find a taxi driver stabbed to death in his car. Sonja is found covered in blood and freely admits to the killing, though she provides little additional information. In the second case, the police find a dead man on the street who was apparently using the ATM. He is Denis Falk and the police learn that he had just recently been given a clean bill of health after a thorough medical exam. When Sonja escapes from her jail cell and Falk's body is...

Three youngsters are shot dead whilst having a woodland picnic in fancy dress. One girl's mother reports her as missing but postcards from Paris supposedly sent by the daughter negate any police involvement. Then another parent reports that Wallander's troubled colleague, Svedberg, had earlier expressed an interest in the kids' movements, and then Svedberg is also found shot, photos of the dead trio being found in his flat along with one of a mystery woman, identified by Svedberg's cousin as his ex-girlfriend Louise. The corpses are found, and a friend of the victims ...