Jocke wants to change his life and start studying after the prison sentence, but instead he is freed, against his will, from the prison. His brother owes a criminal from the Balcans large sums of money.

Two patrolling cops stumble on to three criminals who have just stolen large amounts of explosives, and are killed in cold blood. Martin Beck and his team must now work day and night to find out who the killers are and what they are planning to do with the explosives before it's too late. Meanwhile, Gunvald Larsson who was a close friend of one of the murdered cops is ignoring all rules in his quest for revenge.