A Swedish police officer has been suspended from duty after working for over a decade as an instructor at a private shooting range where gang criminals were among the customers, according to an investigation by Dagens Nyheter. The officer reportedly worked at the Stockholm-area shooting range during his free time, providing instruction to customers that included members of some of Sweden's most violent gangs. Police leadership was informed about the situation five years ago through then-security chief Ari Stenman, but no action was taken at that time.
Following the newspaper's investigation, current security chief Christer Johansson confirmed the officer was suspended on the same day the revelations were published. Johansson described the situation as 'catastrophic' and acknowledged that the police authority should have acted much earlier on information dating back to 2021. National Police Commissioner Petra Lundh has ordered two separate investigations: one into how the police authority handled the case involving the officer, and another into the overall security work within the entire police organization.
catastrophic
The shooting range in question has reportedly been connected to at least 30 investigations into weapons crimes and murders between 2010 and 2023, with police mapping showing at least eight murders or attempted murders occurred shortly after suspects trained at the facility.
the police authority should have acted much earlier on information dating back to 2021