A 12-year-old boy has been apprehended for allegedly carrying out a murder for hire, mistakenly targeting the wrong individual and receiving a payment of £20,000 for the act.
The incident took place in Malmö, Sweden, on December 12, where the child is implicated in a drive-by shooting that claimed the life of a 21-year-old man. The victim was shot while traveling with friends on Galgebacksvägen in the Oxie area around 10:30 pm. Subsequently, the victim was discovered alone in the back seat of a car in Hindby and was pronounced dead at the hospital.
After a thorough investigation, authorities identified the 12-year-old as the primary suspect and took him into custody on Tuesday. The boy, not a resident of Malmö, reportedly traveled to the city specifically to carry out the attack for a substantial payment of 250,000 SEK (£20,000).
Due to being below the legal age of responsibility, the suspect has been placed in care and provided with legal representation as per court records. In Sweden, individuals under 15 years old cannot be incarcerated.
It is suspected by the police that the intended target of the shooting was one of the passengers in the car. The victim had a criminal record, having served a prison term of just over two years for offenses including robbery and threats against an official. The acquaintances present in the vehicle during the incident also had prior criminal involvements.
Statistics from the Local Government Information Unit reveal that Sweden experiences a high rate of youth street gang participation within the EU. In 2023, the country witnessed 55 fatal shootings in 363 separate incidents, despite having a population of 10.5 million people. In contrast, only six deadly shootings occurred across Finland, Denmark, and Iceland combined during the same year.
This case marks the boy as the youngest individual in Sweden to face accusations of fatally shooting someone.