By: V4 Agency
A police station was evacuated in Sweden because a suspected bomb was found in the building. The number of bomb attacks is particularly high in the northern European country, especially in the so called “vulnerable areas” with perpetrators mainly linked to criminal gangs. A recent police report reveals that more than seventy “vulnerable” or “at risk areas” are registered in the country. Another report points out that 52 active criminal networks have been identified in Stockholm.
A police station and its surroundings had to be evacuated Wednesday afternoon in Gavle, Sweden, after a suspected bomb was found in the building, the Samnytt news portal reports. Several police stations have been attacked in the country, the portal recalls, adding that the attacks were linked to criminal networks.
As V4NA earlier reported, the number of bomb attacks in Sweden have risen to high levels in recent years, even breaking the record in 2019. The number of homicides in 2020 also surpassed all previous figures.
The numbers of shootings and bombings, while still high, have fallen slightly since last year, Interior Minister Mikael Damberg told a press briefing this week. There were 249 confirmed shootings in the January-September period this year, down from 289 in 2020. The minister also said that 113 bomb attacks were registered as of September this year, also a decrease from last year.
The number of people killed in shootings, however, has gone up compared to 2020.
Regional police chief Mat Lofving said at a press briefing in Stockholm that Stockholm county has 25 so-called “vulnerable areas”, six of those are classified as “particularly vulnerable” and 52 criminal organisations are known to operate in the region.
These criminal organisations are mainly involved in drug trafficking and abuse of welfare benefits, the police chief explained, adding that the propensity for violence is also increasing. He said that while in the past they fired shots only to scare people and caused no injuries, today we are talking about execution-stye shootings.
More than seventy “vulnerable areas” have been identified in Sweden, a recent police report reveals. As of 2015, law enforcement updates a list of these areas every two years, grouping them into three categories.
In “particularly vulnerable areas” police are practically unable to carry out their duties, there is a general refusal to cooperate with law enforcement, and those who dare to turn to the authorities are systematically threatened or may even fall victim to violent attacks. 19 areas are listed in this category.
“Vulnerable areas” have populations of low socio-economic status and criminal gangs are a determinant factor in local communities, which means frequent incidents of violence, drug trafficking on the streets, and riots. Police have identified 28 “vulnerable areas”.
The third category is termed “areas at risk”, with 14 districts that are not yet considered vulnerable, but are at risk of becoming so.
A common feature of these “vulnerable areas” is that they are dominated by non-Western immigrants.