A 15-year-old boy who was on his way to a school prom was stabbed to death at his home in Älvsjö yesterday. It is the second knife murder in Stockholm in a short time where both perpetrator and victim are very young. The police take seriously the fact that more and more boys are arming themselves with knives. – They feel a greater insecurity to be in the public environment. It is incredibly dangerous with the escalation that takes place when you arm yourself, says Anders Lindberg, Södermalm municipal police. Today, the flag flew at half-mast at the English school in Älvsjö where the 15-year-old was a student. Soon he too was going on summer vacation, but on his way to the graduation ball, he was stabbed to death outside his home. A boy of the same age is arrested on suspicion of the murder. Today, many people left flowers and lit candles at the scene of the murder. – I feel sadness and I think a lot about the family. I must have bumped into them in the elevator because my mother lives in the same gate, says Fatima Eriksson. The knife murder is the second in a short time. At the end of May, a fifteen-year-old boy was stabbed to death by a boy of the same age after a fight in a park in Hammarby Sjöstad in Stockholm. Recently there was a big knife fight in Eskilstuna where teenagers hurt each other. The police are now taking a serious look at the fact that more and more boys are arming themselves with knives. – There is a risk that this is an outcome of having an increased conflict situation on social media and feeling greater insecurity, says Anders Lindberg, Södermalm municipal police. Escalation of violence The police describe an escalation of violence among young people, where more and more are arming themselves in order to protect themselves in the event of a fight. – It must be knives, stabbing weapons and other dangerous objects. But it is precisely the fact that you expect a conflict and that you want to protect yourself from it. I think that feels uncomfortable. The concern that knife violence will escalate is great among young people that TV4 Nyheterna spoke to. But others have instead become accustomed to the violence. – It could have been my friend or family member. Of course I’m sorry but I’m kind of used to stuff like that. It could have been me, says Eren Eray Musa, 18 years old.
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