It has often been claimed that the victims of criminal gang violence are almost always involved in organized crime themselves. But according to the Swedish police, that picture is now wrong.

Since the beginning of 2023 alone, at least 60 outsiders have been killed or injured in shootings and explosions linked to criminal networks

– This is an effect of the high level of conflict, which has been the case for a number of years. We believe it will continue to be high, August Knutsson, operational coordinator at the police’s national operations center, told Swedish Radio.

According to police figures, 22 outsiders have been killed and another 38 injured in gang-related attacks over the past two and a half years.

In some cases, the violence has been directed against relatives of known criminals – such as relatives or girlfriends – but there are also cases where the wrong person is killed by mistake, or someone is injured simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

In 2023 in particular, the number of external victims increased sharply, and although the trend seems to have slowed down somewhat, police have already recorded at least six cases in 2025.

Young people and drug addicts

According to the police, a key explanation for the increase in the number of innocent victims is that the killings and blasts are largely carried out by very young people – often with no previous experience, and sometimes brought in from other cities.

The young perpetrators have no relationship with their victims and often act on vague instructions. In many cases, they have only seen a picture of the target or an address, which increases the risk of misidentification and attacks against the wrong people.

– This is an effect of the fact that many of the perpetrators of these crimes are not part of the conflict itself. Many are young perpetrators who take on different missions. Often under the influence of drugs, with little local knowledge and no individual knowledge, states August Knutsson.

– They’re given a task to carry out, and that results in a high risk of shooting or bombing the wrong target.

“In the past, you did not go to relatives”

One of the more high-profile cases occurred at the end of April this year, when a mother and her young daughter were seriously injured in an explosion at their home. According to prosecutor Daniel Insulander, the attack was aimed at the wrong person.

– They are innocent. In the past, you did not go after relatives or girlfriends. It was very rare that innocent people became victims of something like this.

– Storming into a place and shooting wildly, throwing explosives inside, or trying to burn down a house where innocent people are present – this has become much more common now than just five years ago, he says.