Sweden to accelerate surveillance legislation for minors after bombing wave

Stockholm (Reuters)-Switch will accelerate a new legislation to allow the police to use electronic surveillance tools against minors after dozens of bombings related to gang in the Stockholm capital in January, the prime minister said Thursday.

Sweden has been plagued by gang crime that has intensified in the last two decades and in 2023 the Nordic country registered the highest level of deadly armed violence per capita in Europe.

There have been a series of unprecedented bombings, mainly in the Stockholm region, with more than 30 only this month, most of them acts of extortion by gangs against companies and citizens, police authorities say.

“It is quite obvious that we have no control over the wave of violence,” said Prime Minister Ulf Kristerson after a meeting with the Council against organized crime that the government groups, police officers and customs.

January bombings have caused damage to buildings and some injuries, but there are no deaths. Police have ordered residents in some areas of southern Stockholm that remain inside sometimes.

Gangs have led to social media platforms such as Tiktok and Instagram in the last two years to hire young people to carry out attacks, police investigators say.

“Today we see young people aged 12, 13 and 14 who carry out horrible violent missions as if they were additional works,” said National Police Commissioner Petra Lundh. “Missions are openly announced in digital markets.”

Kristerson said the government would exceed legislation this year to allow the police to pass through mobile phones and listen electronically to people under 15 years.

“This is important, so we arrive at those who often feel very far and order crimes of children in Sweden,” Kristerson said.

He criticized social media platforms for not doing enough to protect children. “If this is not done, we will use the Swedish law against its ability to use platforms in this way.”

Despite the increase in bombing, the Swedish police have advanced against gangs: there have been less mortal shootings and more convictions in the last two years.

(Johan Ahlander report; Mark Heinrich edition)