Annika Maria Östberg Deasy was born on January 6, 1954, in Stockholm, Sweden. She grew up in a neighborhood called Hässelby. During her childhood, her family faced many challenges. In the 1960s, Annika moved with her mother to California in search of a better life.

Once in California, Annika began struggling to find her place. She eventually ran away from home and found herself living on the streets of San Francisco. This was a difficult time for her, and she turned to drugs to cope with her circumstances.

In her early years in San Francisco, Annika married Brian Deasy. After their marriage, she stopped using drugs for a while. However, when the marriage ended, she fell back into drug addiction. Annika's troubles with the law began during this time.

In 1973, Annika was convicted of theft and received 18 months probation. That same year, she was also convicted of possession of a controlled substance and sentenced to three years probation. In 1976, she was again in trouble with the law for providing liquor to a minor. She was sentenced to 12 months probation, spent one day in jail, and had to pay a $65 fine.

In 1972, a significant event occurred in Annika's life when a man was stabbed to death in her San Francisco apartment. She admitted to being involved in this incident, which led to her receiving a 5-year suspended sentence for voluntary manslaughter. Annika later claimed that she confessed to help her then-boyfriend.

On April 30, 1981, Annika Östberg and her boyfriend, Bob Cox, committed a robbery that led to the death of Joe Torre, a former restaurant owner. They planned to steal stolen meat, and Östberg made an appointment to meet Torre at a warehouse. While she pretended to pull the meat from the truck, Cox shot Torre. After robbing him, they drove away.

The next day, their vehicle broke down. When Sergeant Helbush stopped to help, there are conflicting accounts about what happened. Östberg claimed that while she searched for her driver's license, Cox shot Helbush in the back of the head. They took Helbush's wallet and his police car before fleeing the scene.

Later, police found Helbush's body after he failed to report back. Officer Don Anderson discovered the stolen police car on a road nearby. After a brief chase, Cox crashed the stolen car, and during a shootout, Östberg assisted him in reloading. Cox was wounded, and he eventually surrendered. Östberg attempted to grab a gun before she was arrested by police.

In later hearings, Östberg detailed the events and attributed her actions to drug abuse, although tests showed no drugs in her system at the time. In 1983, she received a sentence of 25 years to life for the murders. Over the years, she was denied parole multiple times, with strong opposition from the victims' families and authorities. Campaigns in both the U.S. and Sweden emerged regarding her case, highlighting differing views on her culpability.

In 2009, after serving time in California, she was transferred to Sweden. In November 2009, a Swedish court decided to limit her life sentence, allowing for her release in May 2011 after serving 30 years in prison.