An arms dealer convicted of helping criminals had only been given an “apparently formal check” by the police. The example is highlighted in the new review from the police’s supervisory department, which has gone through permit cases in five counties.
The review shows, among other things, large differences between how the checks are carried out, that in some cases the police did not carry out the checks that they should have done – and that possible weapons crimes are not reported. (See fact box.)
Magnus Roglert is head of the police unit responsible for the checks and says he welcomes the review.
– With the supervisory unit’s recommendations behind us, we will also continue our work in the future to ensure legal, uniform and efficient handling, he says in a press release on the police’s website. He emphasizes that several measures have already been decided, including digital training for the officers and a new knowledge test for the arms dealers.
The supervisory unit states in its report that these measures were decided so late that it is not possible to assess whether they will meet the needs.
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The review also identifies major shortcomings in the police’s case management system. They mean that you “don’t have a safe and comprehensive picture” of how many people are allowed to receive firearms for repair. The flawed system cannot be remedied with new functions either because “it risks leading to unforeseeable consequential problems”, but must be phased out and replaced from the turn of the year 2024/2025.
Administrators themselves state to the report authors that they lack competence and experience. A recurring two-day conference was abolished in 2015 and has had no successor. A new education “was developed in 2019, but was not carried out.”
Old regulations have not been updated, and according to the review there is a risk both of corruption and of weapons falling into the wrong hands. The fact that there is no systematic follow-up of the decisions also means that they risk not following the law.
SVT Nyheter is looking for police management.