In April 2024, a lonely and bored ninth-grader from Luleå, Sweden, found himself drawn into a dark online world. Frequently absent from school due to mental health struggles, he spent much of his time isolated in his room. His home life had also been disrupted a couple of years earlier when his mother gained custody of him and his siblings after their father was convicted of threatening her. While scrolling through TikTok, a link to a Telegram chat group appeared. Intrigued by the violent images and videos shared within the group, he clicked the link. He soon discovered that the group was not merely a platform for sharing disturbing content but also a marketplace for contract killings and bombings.
The boy, seeing a job posting for a “jappning” in Stockholm – Swedish slang for a hit – decided to respond. Though this initial contact did not lead to the Stockholm job, it initiated a series of online interactions that shifted from Telegram to the encrypted messaging app Signal. Ultimately, he was offered a contract killing in Denmark, a task that would drastically alter the course of his life and plunge him into the heart of a violent gang conflict.
Nine months later, the boy, now 16, found himself sitting beneath the imposing crystal chandeliers of a courtroom in Copenhagen, Denmark. He was charged with the attempted murder of members of the Comanches motorcycle gang in Brøndby, a suburb of Copenhagen, stemming from the events of the previous April. During his months in Danish custody, he had turned 16. In the courtroom, he recounted his recruitment through online channels. He explained that the group appeared organically in his TikTok feed and initially contained only violent media, with job offers emerging later. He denied ever having harbored thoughts of harming others before encountering this online world.
The young man appeared as an ordinary teenager, with close-cropped hair, dressed in a blue t-shirt and light jeans. He spoke quietly in his distinct northern Swedish dialect, occasionally offering a shy smile to the Swedish interpreter. He was one of several young Swedes lured into the lucrative but dangerous world of “crime as a service” within Copenhagen’s gang war. During the previous year, numerous Swedish individuals, many of them teenagers, had been recruited to carry out around twenty acts of violence. His case resonated with another recent case involving Elias, a boy from northern Sweden, who received a 5.5-year prison sentence for accepting a similar contract killing, though he was apprehended before receiving a weapon.
Unlike Elias, the boy from Luleå did obtain a weapon, as evidenced by photographs found on his mobile phone, pictures he himself had taken during his mission in Copenhagen. While he denied the charges, he admitted to the circumstances surrounding his journey to Denmark, stating frankly that he had accepted a contract killing. His defense attorney argued that he had experienced a change of heart and abandoned the mission before his arrest. The prosecution, however, contended otherwise, pointing to numerous opportunities the boy had to withdraw but didn’t, including his return to Denmark after being intercepted by police during his first attempt. His mother, alerted to his plans, had contacted the police, leading to his apprehension in Gothenburg. He was returned home to Luleå, but just five days later, he embarked on a second attempt, successfully reaching Copenhagen.
Upon arriving in Copenhagen, the boy received around 1,000 Swedish kronor from a contact. He purchased food and waited for further instructions. He documented his long wait in messages to his handlers, raising questions about why he didn’t simply return home. He claimed to feel pressured and feared for his family’s safety due to threats from his recruiters. He was eventually picked up and driven to the Comanches clubhouse, allegedly by a 30-year-old Danish woman who is also suspected of providing him with the pistol. His assignment was to shoot anyone exiting the clubhouse, excluding women and children. He hid in the bushes outside the clubhouse, taking photographs, and later claimed he saw people inside but avoided shooting them. Eventually, he made his way to the central station, bought snacks, and took a taxi to Kastrup Airport, where he was arrested. While the prosecution maintained his arrest was due to police suspicion, the boy claimed he sought out the police himself. Upon his arrest, a pistol, his Swedish ID, and his snacks were found in his possession.
The case, involving what the Danish Minister of Justice referred to as “Swedish child soldiers,” garnered significant media attention in Denmark. The boy’s family, now living under protected identities, could not attend the trial. Their situation worsened when the people who hired him demanded payment for the pistol and his travel expenses, compounding the threats they were already facing. The boy spoke of the significant impact the events had on his life, highlighting the threats and displacement his family endured. The trial concluded in early March, with the verdict pending. The 30-year-old Danish woman also involved in the case denied all charges. Several other young Swedes were awaiting trial for similar crimes related to the ongoing gang conflict in Copenhagen, a conflict fueled by the chilling “crime as a service” model.
