Even 13-14 year olds are carrying firearms and teenagers are committing murders. Belonging to a criminal gang is trendy, says a journalist who researched the topic.
Kai Jaskari,
Joonas Haverinen,
Marjut Raunio
– In Sweden, it is trendy to belong to a criminal gang. They are attractive and they give a sense of belonging.
That’s what he says Diamant Salihu, an investigative journalist for the Swedish television station SVT, who has written a book about criminal gangs. The name of the book is ominously “Until everyone dies”.
Last year, 62 people died in shootings between gangs. In total, almost 400 people were shot in Sweden.
Behind the shooting incidents are competing criminal gangs.
– Fifty criminal networks operate in the Stockholm area alone. They are at odds with each other.
Now there has been a conflict between two factions, says Diamant Salihu.
Gangs compete for the lucrative drug market. Showdowns become a cycle of revenge, where shootings are retaliated with shootings and bombings.
Young people are used as child soldiers
There have been 17 shooting incidents and 12 explosions in the Stockholm region this year.
The showdown that happened at the end of January in Huddingen Skogås, south of Stockholm, has received a lot of attention. A 15-year-old boy died in the shooting. The suspected perpetrator is also only 15 years old.
Minors do not receive nearly the same punishments as adults. While an adult can receive a life sentence for murder, a person under the age of 18 is sentenced to a maximum of four years in closed youth care.
Light sentences are one reason why even 13-14-year-olds carry firearms, and even teenagers commit murder.
– Older gang members use young people as child soldiers, summarizes Diamant Salihu.
Crime has become a “career option”
According to Diamant Salihu, there is no simple explanation for Sweden’s gang problem.
– The reasons are manifold, such as the very far-reaching segregation of residential areas and schools. There are areas where a large number of children do not qualify for further studies, and their school path is interrupted.
They can drift into an alternative “career” by pursuing a criminal path.
The parents of these young people may have lived for years in disadvantaged neighborhoods without knowing Swedish, and they have not been able to enter the labor market. Exclusion is inherited.
Government after government has unsuccessfully tried to find ways to prevent the recruitment of new gang members.
A model from a neighboring country
Now Sweden is following the example of Denmark, where crimes related to gangs are punished twice, says Diamant Salihu.
– The new government has talked about much tougher punishments but also about preventive measures. Both are needed to get results, he estimates.
Among other things, the government is investigating whether it is possible to rely on anonymous witnesses in trials, because many do not dare to testify against criminal gangs for fear of reprisals.
According to the Danish model, the establishment of so-called body inspection areas is also being investigated. In such areas, the police would have expanded powers to perform a body search, even if the person is not suspected of a crime.
The government plans to loosen the confidentiality legislation so that schools and social services can more easily share information about young people with the police.
Stockholm’s acute gang violence situation is so serious that Stockholm has been promised to borrow 300 police officers from other parts of the country to lighten the workload.
– The investigation rate of these crimes is low. Young people know that the risk of getting caught is small, says Diamant Salihu.
The topic is also discussed in A-studio. You can watch the program here.