Published 19 August 2024 at 11.38
Domestic. The number of children under the age of 15 who are suspected of involvement in murder plans has more than tripled compared to last year, according to recent figures from the Public Prosecutor's Office. Until July this year, 93 children under the age of 15 have been suspected, compared to 26 in the same period in 2023, SVT reports.
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The recruitment of these so-called child torpedoes are now happening at a rapid pace through social media and encrypted apps, according to the police.
– My view is that it is a deliberate strategy from our criminal networks. It is extremely effective and brutal, says Hanna Paradis of the National Operative Department, Noa, to SVT.
Increasingly, nowadays, “ordinary young people who have a well-functioning everyday life, go to school, have leisure activities and live at home” are being recruited. , according to Hanna Paradis. Persons not known to the police.
Recruitment has become increasingly digital and faster, with assassination missions being advertised on social media and apps such as Telegram. The compensation offered can be as high as one million kroner, but the risks are great.
– You may think that it is a large sum of money, but the risk that you expose yourself to, the target you become and even family becomes, it will be with all one's life. In that context, it's not that much money, says Hanna Paradis.
Prosecutor Lisa Dos Santos emphasizes that children should not have access to these apps and urges parents to take more responsibility for their children's mobile use.
– My answer is simple, no, no, no, children should not have these apps. Parents must take a much greater responsibility for mobile phones, she tells SVT.
The police and prosecutors also highlight the need for the companies behind the apps that are used to take greater responsibility to prevent this type of criminal activity on their platforms.
– They have enabled countless murders. I would like to put pressure on these tech giants not to allow this on their platforms when so many lives are being lost, says Lisa Dos Santos to SVT.