Crime

Sweden: 23 Bystanders Killed in Three Years Due to Gang Crime

Is Sweden's crackdown finally working or is the country losing control against organized crime?

Published MAY 5

Sweden: 23 Bystanders Killed in Three Years Due to Gang Crime

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Above: A board with images of ceased weapons is pictured in Rinkeby police station on Aug. 31, 2022. Image credit: Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP/Getty Images

The Spin

Pro-government narrative

Sweden's tough-on-gangs approach is delivering real results — shootings dropped 63% in 2025, while murder rates hit their lowest point in a decade. Expanded stop-and-search powers abd wiretapping of suspects including minors have also chipped away at the gang pipeline. Residents in targeted neighborhoods have welcomed the crackdown, proving that smart, aggressive policing works.

Thorstrike on X The Telegraph

Government-critical narrative

Sweden's gang crisis is nowhere near solved — over 67,000 people are now tied to organized crime, bombings keep rising, and nearly 60 no-go zones exist across the country. An Iranian regime-linked gang is essentially running a militia on Swedish soil, and tougher laws haven't stopped the bleeding. Policing alone can't fix this, and the scale of the problem keeps growing despite years of government promises.

Peter Sweden on X European Conservative