Published 14 June 2021 at 11.46
Domestic. Police have identified 745 cocaine buyers during an investigation against four men who sold cocaine professionally seven days a week.
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For almost two spring months, the police scouts were able to follow how the four men in their 20s in Gothenburg sold cocaine full time. The quartet is now being prosecuted for a serious drug offense.
Seven days a week, weekdays and weekends, the purchases were made via so-called “seal headphones” and the cocaine was then delivered to the agreed location.
The actual transfers, when portion-packed cocaine is exchanged for cash, have taken place in the sellers' car. These purchases go quickly – usually in less than 30 seconds, says Johan Ekström at the reconnaissance section in Greater Gothenburg at the police's home office.
The investigation has revealed that the four accused together had communication with 897 unique telephone numbers via five cell phones . The police have been able to link 745 suspicious buyers to these.
– This is an extensive cocaine sale that has generated a lot of money for a criminal network in Gothenburg. In this way, cocaine buyers are important enablers for serious organized crime, says Johan Ekström.
More than 80 identified buyers have been notified of suspicion, of which about thirty have been caught red-handed immediately after a transfer. The others have been identified via telephone communication and have received home visits from the police.
– We have gone home to about fifty people who have been notified of suspicion of drug crimes. Some have confessed directly, others have denied and the cases have gone to prosecutors. In cases where there are children in the family, we have reported concerns to the social services, says Johan Ekström. The material will be handed over to the affected local police areas for further investigation.
– So there are a large number of cocaine buyers – mainly in the Gothenburg area – who can expect the police to knock on the door soon, states Ekström.
Of the 745 people identified as suspected buyers, the average age is 35 years and 18 percent are women. 36 percent have children under the age of 18 and 36 percent live in Gothenburg city, 17 percent live in “affluent areas”, 3 percent live in “vulnerable areas”, according to the police.