Never experienced so many relatives getting in touch

When relatives become a legitimate target in the ongoing gang war, a record number of them report to the police.

Several fear that they will have their gate blown up or be shot at.

– We have not seen the increase in the number of relatives of criminals who are afraid and now contact the police before, says Erik Åkerlund at the police in Stockholm.

Aftonbladet was recently able to tell about Josef, who is the brother of a network criminal man and who a few weeks ago had to leave everything and flee with his family to a secret location.

The day after the mother of gang criminal Ismail Abdo was shot to death in Uppsala, the murder that started attacks on relatives of other criminals, Josef’s brother called him.

– He told me and the family that we have to leave because now things are going to hell, that now all the relatives have been driven away, says Josef.

Josef, who himself has never been the least bit involved in crime, is sure that he is an intended target in the conflict – recently a number of people were arrested on suspicion of having tried to carry out an attack on the home that Josef had already left.

– I am incredibly disappointed in my brother and other criminals for the situation they created. That we who have never done anything are the ones who get to hide, he says.

Can’t protect everyone

So far, Josef and his family have not received any help from the authorities with protection or otherwise.

They now have no income, the children cannot go to school and they have no idea when they will be able to return home again – a fate they share with many other relatives of criminals who have fled since the latest wave of violence began.

Erik Åkerlund at the Stockholm police is commanding officer for the special incident Frank. He says that the increase in the number of relatives of criminals who are afraid and now contact the police is at a level they have never seen before.

The potential targets are so many that the equation does not add up.

– The police make round-the-clock assessments of information that comes in and based on that it is decided whether to deploy police officers. It is the threat assessment there and then, and the probability that it will happen that decides, says Erik Åkerlund.

But the number of addresses against which there is a threat image changes constantly.

– Intensive work is underway to try to be in the most vulnerable places and try to get hold of the people who are central. It’s not just residential addresses, it can be business addresses and people who are involved in various ways. It is an impossibility to be in all places at the same time, says Erik Åkerlund.

“The situation is changing rapidly”

Even in region Mitt, which was one of the most affected regions during the wave of violence, more relatives are contacting us than ever before.

– This also applies to questions and concerns and concerns from the general public as well, says press spokesperson Mathias Rutegård.

He says that the police work to map people who are at risk of being exposed to crime and that they also have active work within the crime victim and personal security activities with the people who have a concrete threat to them.

– But these are volatile environments where loyalties can quickly shift and conflicts arise. We are aware of several different people who are at risk of exposure and possible crime scenes, but these constitute a daily situation that can change quickly. We continuously review how we should prioritize our resources to be able to be present in the places that we consider to be possible targets, says Mathias Rutegård.

“Haven’t chosen to have a criminal brother”

Erik Åkerlund says that he understands that relatives of criminals, and also neighbors of criminals and the general public, feel concerned about recent developments.

– The recent violent incidents have been very reckless and affect third parties. It is a challenge with a large number of people connected to criminal networks and a large number of relatives or relatives. The police get a lot of information from the public – keep it up. Contact us if you see something that deviates.

Josef and his family do not know if or when they will get any help. What he feels they need is help with new identities so they can live some kind of normal life again.

– I don’t think you deserve this when you’ve lived an orderly life. I didn’t choose to have a criminal brother, just like other relatives out there didn’t choose this. We must not be forgotten.

FACT Support for you as a relative of an individual in a criminal environment:

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