Swedish Police warn of an increase in shootings due to gang instability

Police in the Swedish city of Uppsala have warned that the city may face an increase in shootings due to a power vacuum among criminal gangs as several prominent gangsters are currently behind bars.

Uppsala police intelligence director Jale Poljarevius stated that the city may be facing a new wave of shootings this summer as many of the leaders or prominent members of criminal gangs are currently in custody, presenting a power vacuum in the city.

“A void has been created. And in that, others want to step forward,”SVT in Sweden was told by Poljarevius that some gangs are able to show off their status through cars and clothing, but others use violence.

“You want to create status, and you do that by going in and shooting,”He said that there are currently five to six criminal gangs operating in the area.

There have been 115 shootings within Uppsala County in the past five years. The majority of these occurred in Uppsala. As a result, 43 people were injured and 11 people died.

Sweden: Fatal Shootings in First 3 Months of 2022 Over Triple That of 2021https://t.co/LQRPe3Flpf

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Shootings in Uppsala did decrease from 2019 to 2020, but intelligence director Poljarevius said police can never say they are finished with gang activity, saying, “You never do, cracking all the gangs is a nice political slogan, but it can’t be achieved. There are always new ones coming.”

The number of shootings has increased, including fatalities, in recent years. There have been an average 40 deaths each year, since 2017, according to the average.

There were several other high-profile shootings last year, such as the shooting of Einar, a 19-year old rapper. This shooting is thought to be linked to organized criminal gangs.

A Swedish officer on patrol was also shot to death in Gothenburg last July. The officer’s death was eventually linked to a 17-year old boy who was believed to be caught up in gang violence.

The number of deaths from shootings rose by more than threefold in the first quarter of the year compared with the same time period of 2021. 17 people were killed across the country.