The fight to tear children away from gangs

At first glance, Frisuset in Stockholm looks like any ordinary school. A group of girls sit together during recess and laugh, while the rhythmic bounce of a basketball can be heard from the adjacent hall. Only the social workers and supervisors discreetly roaming the premises hint that something else is going on inside.

The spacious building is simultaneously a school, a community center, and a place where young people at risk of being drawn into crime can come.

That mission has become increasingly urgent in Sweden, where gang violence has spread and teenagers are being recruited into organized crime at younger ages. Stockholm, one of the cities hardest hit by the violence, has invested millions in prevention programs aimed at stopping kids before they even join gangs.

“We have two options,” said Alexander Ojane, Stockholm’s deputy mayor in charge of social affairs and public safety. “We can wait until it’s too late – or we can try to save the situation in advance.”

The debate over how to do this has become one of the key political battles in Sweden ahead of parliamentary elections in September. The center-right government of Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has sought to crack down on gang violence with tougher penalties, expanded police powers and more restrictive immigration laws. At one point, it even considered jailing children as young as 13 in the most serious cases.

At Frišuset, the approach is different: mentoring, talent development, and early intervention.

"Education is the best way to help young people lead good lives. That's why we work closely with schools and social services," said Ojane.

Sweden's problems with organized crime and drug trafficking have been building for years. The rise of social media has made it easier to recruit, while tougher penalties for young adults have led to gangs increasingly using younger children to commit crimes. According to the Swedish Prosecutor's Office, in the first nine months of 2025, 127 suspects in murders - including aiding and abetting murder - were under the age of 15. In the same period in 2022, the number was 14.

The risk factors are often similar, said Sven Granat, a criminologist at Stockholm University. “Individual factors, such as impulsive personality and difficulties in school, often go hand in hand with social risks: poverty and unemployment, violence or drug abuse in the family.”

Statistically, these factors are particularly common in migrant communities, primarily for socioeconomic reasons, but also cultural ones, he said.

“These are often large families with many siblings, where parents often cannot read or write Swedish. This makes it difficult for them to adequately supervise and support their children,” Granat said. In some “rather patriarchal cultures,” he added, there is also a perception that problems are solved through violence. The high level of residential segregation in Sweden has further exacerbated the problem.

This is where Frichuset tries to intervene.

"The idea is for children from all over Stockholm to come together here and come into contact with other social groups," said social worker Kamila Salazar Atijas, who has been working with children from difficult backgrounds for more than 20 years.

More than 90 percent of those who commit crimes are already known to social services, she said. “We could save many of them if we invested in them early enough.”

In recent years, the children in the program have been getting younger. “They are systematically and brutally exploited by gangs,” said Salazar Atias. “Many come to us and say, ‘I never chose this. I got sucked into it, and now I don’t know how to get out.’”

The centerpiece of Frissouset's work is his school. In addition to regular subjects, students must choose an elective course called "Passion," with options ranging from basketball and skateboarding to music and dance. On the wall of the common room hang portraits of former students who later became athletes or actors.

The goal is simple: keep at-risk youth in school and give them a sense of belonging.

"It gives children a positive context, an identity. If it's chaotic at home and they're not doing well at school, at least they have their own community to hold on to," said Salazar Atias.

Deputy Mayor Ojane said institutions like Frishusset were a key part of the city's safety net. Gang violence in Stockholm began largely as a local phenomenon, concentrated in so-called vulnerable areas, he said. But the structure of organized crime has changed.

Gang bosses are increasingly operating from abroad, Ojane said. “From there, they pull the strings and pressure young people in Sweden to commit horrific crimes, sometimes involving innocent bystanders.”

The steady influx of recruits is linked to the deepening social divide in Sweden, he argued. “Since the welfare system was reduced, things have really picked up speed – like a snowball that is hard to stop. It is getting bigger and more brutal.”

Stockholm has tried to respond by funding prevention programs, supporting parents of at-risk children, hiring more social workers, helping people trying to leave gangs, and providing free after-school care.

However, the national government has placed an emphasis on law enforcement. Gang crime was a central issue in the last election and helped Ulf Kristersson's coalition win power. Since then, the government has expanded police powers, tightened immigration rules and increased penalties for young adults.

Her proposal to allow prison sentences for 13-year-olds in particularly serious cases was withdrawn last week, apparently because it lacked a majority in parliament. Many experts and politicians, including some in the government itself, warned that the measure could only encourage gangs to recruit even younger children - as has happened after previous changes to penal policy.

Ojane said the deterrent effect would also be limited. “I don’t think a 13-year-old who is being threatened by a gang would care if he goes to jail,” he said. “That’s not the way to stop this.”

Granat, the criminologist, agrees that the focus should be on the adults behind the violence. "It's much more important to bring the organizers of these crimes to justice," he said.

Some progress has been made. Expanded police powers and improved investigative methods have helped authorities prevent or solve more shootings and remove illegal weapons from the streets, Granat said.

Ojane says Stockholm now has significantly fewer open drug markets. Some gang leaders abroad have also been caught, including, most recently, a high-ranking member of the notorious Foxtrot gang in Tunisia.

But stricter law enforcement alone won't keep young people out of gangs in the long term, Salazar Atias said. Rates of recidivism remain extremely high after prison or juvenile detention.

Frichusette is trying to fill that void by helping young people find jobs, so that debt doesn't push them back into gangs, and by connecting them with mentors who have themselves left criminal networks.

“They are compelling ambassadors because they were once in the exact same situation themselves,” said Salazar Atias. “Those who leave gangs only say three sentences, and the mentors immediately know what they are going through.”

It helps the most, she said, when they are offered a path away from crime. Sweden's new Social Services Act, passed last year, has created better conditions for organizations like Frishuset. But the government could do more on prevention, including reviewing the role of social media in gang recruitment, she added.

In Frišuset, construction of a new building is scheduled to begin later this year.

“The need is so great that we have outgrown our premises,” said Salazar Atias.

Translation: NB