Multi-million donation in the fight against criminal gangs

A center for police research is being established at Malmö University following a private multi-million dollar donation.

The aim is to strengthen the police’s efforts against gang violence and the work against the recruitment of children into criminal networks.

Länsförsäkringar Skåne donates SEK 50 million for investments aimed at children involved in crime, of which SEK 30 million goes to the establishment of the Malmö center for policing and prevention.

– This is the largest single donation that the company has made in its 187-year history, says CEO Susanne Bäsk.

The donation is given in light of the gang crime that today affects a large part of society, she says.

– We are customer-owned and part of society and want to be an active social actor. We operate in an area where this is very tangible, so we think it has a natural connection to the type of business we conduct.

The center is being built in collaboration between the Department of Criminology and the unit for police work at Malmö University. With the donation, it gets an annual budget of six million kroner for the next five years.

Manne Gerell, docent in criminology at the department, says that it will fulfill an important function.

– We have very little knowledge of what police efforts work in Sweden and almost nothing of what the police do is evaluated. This will be a very big player in the area, there is nothing close to this size in Sweden.

Together with Anna-Karin Ivert, head of department at the Department of Criminology and Caroline Mellgren, director of the unit for police work, he forms the steering group that will build the center.

– It’s about contributing to reversing this trend we’re seeing, says Caroline Mellgren about the research, which will primarily benefit the police.

Two themes that are initially in focus are preventive work in local communities for reduced crime and increased safety, as well as criminal investigations with a focus on the use of new technology.

A third theme is in-depth research into the work with group violence intervention, known in Malmö as Stop Shooting, which aims to reduce firearm violence. The method has been implemented in several cities and even more cities are on the way.

– It is also important that the police help identify areas where new knowledge is needed, says Mellgren.

Several researchers and doctoral students will be linked to the centre. The recruitment work begins immediately.

– I hope it can become a knowledge center that brings together knowledge and researchers from all over the country, she says.

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