Two explosions rock Malmö as gang conflict continues
The Local Sweden - [email protected]
Published: 17 Dec, 2018 CET.
Updated: Mon 17 Dec 2018 16:05 CET
Malmö's ongoing gang violence is showing no signs of abating, with explosives detonated on Sunday night in apartment buildings in the districts of Fosie and Rosengård.
The first blast went off at around 9.30pm on Sunday at the entry of a stairwell of an apartment building in Fosie. Then just before 3am the following morning, a second, extremely powerful explosion shook the district of Rosengård.
"Put simply, there's a bit of a stir in the underworld," Mattias Sigfridsson, acting deputy police chief in Malmö, told the Sydsvenskan newspaper, explaining that the police had created a "power vacuum" by seizing and arresting several key gangland figures.
"We are going to continue our dogged work against it, but we have a big problem with new recruitment into the network," he added
The second explosion was significantly more powerful than the first. The police operations leader handling that case told the newspaper: "You're talking about serious damage. The angels must have been watching over people here, because it could have been much worse."
Police are investigating this second attack as an attempted murder, directed at a resident of the apartment outside which the device was planted. The other residents of the building will all also be plaintiffs in the case.
Police have yet to determine if there is any connection between the two attacks. A neighbour told Sydsvenskan that even the first blast created a powerful sound.
"I heard a gigantic explosion. You could hear it all the way in Nydala where my brother lives," he said. "It's pretty unpleasant, this is the second time there's been an explosion here. If one person has a threat against them, it affects everyone who lives here."
According to the fire services, the second blast was powerful enough to damage the concrete in the stairwell, forcing them to put in supports to make sure the stairs cannot collapse.
"Windows have been blown out, apartment doors are damaged and even the base of the staircase has visible damage to the concrete," said Gustaf Sandell from the Swedish Fire Service, also speaking to Sydsvenskan. "We've put in supports in the stairwell to make sure nothing happens."
Police took in a handful of people for questioning after the attacks, but all have now been released.
The attacks over the weekend are part of an ongoing wave of deadly violence in Sweden's third largest city, with a brutal shooting taking place in broad daylight on Wednesday.
In November, there were four shootings within a 24-hour period, leaving one young man seriously wounded. In total, more than ten young men have been shot dead this year alone.
In autumn, the city launched a programme called 'Sluta Skjut' or 'Stop Shooting' based on the Group Violence Intervention strategy used with positive results in many US cities.
This has included a meeting between police and some repeat offenders currently on probation, and tougher measures on those suspected of involvement in gun crime.
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The first blast went off at around 9.30pm on Sunday at the entry of a stairwell of an apartment building in Fosie. Then just before 3am the following morning, a second, extremely powerful explosion shook the district of Rosengård.
"Put simply, there's a bit of a stir in the underworld," Mattias Sigfridsson, acting deputy police chief in Malmö, told the Sydsvenskan newspaper, explaining that the police had created a "power vacuum" by seizing and arresting several key gangland figures.
"We are going to continue our dogged work against it, but we have a big problem with new recruitment into the network," he added
The second explosion was significantly more powerful than the first. The police operations leader handling that case told the newspaper: "You're talking about serious damage. The angels must have been watching over people here, because it could have been much worse."
Police are investigating this second attack as an attempted murder, directed at a resident of the apartment outside which the device was planted. The other residents of the building will all also be plaintiffs in the case.
Police have yet to determine if there is any connection between the two attacks. A neighbour told Sydsvenskan that even the first blast created a powerful sound.
"I heard a gigantic explosion. You could hear it all the way in Nydala where my brother lives," he said. "It's pretty unpleasant, this is the second time there's been an explosion here. If one person has a threat against them, it affects everyone who lives here."
According to the fire services, the second blast was powerful enough to damage the concrete in the stairwell, forcing them to put in supports to make sure the stairs cannot collapse.
"Windows have been blown out, apartment doors are damaged and even the base of the staircase has visible damage to the concrete," said Gustaf Sandell from the Swedish Fire Service, also speaking to Sydsvenskan. "We've put in supports in the stairwell to make sure nothing happens."
Police took in a handful of people for questioning after the attacks, but all have now been released.
The attacks over the weekend are part of an ongoing wave of deadly violence in Sweden's third largest city, with a brutal shooting taking place in broad daylight on Wednesday.
In November, there were four shootings within a 24-hour period, leaving one young man seriously wounded. In total, more than ten young men have been shot dead this year alone.
In autumn, the city launched a programme called 'Sluta Skjut' or 'Stop Shooting' based on the Group Violence Intervention strategy used with positive results in many US cities.
This has included a meeting between police and some repeat offenders currently on probation, and tougher measures on those suspected of involvement in gun crime.
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