Disclaimer: The article has mentions of shooting.
A busy city center in Sweden witnessed an incident of reckless gunfire, with a 14-year-old boy identified as the prime suspect. At 2 a.m. local time on October 4, the local police received preliminary reports about the incident, which occurred in the middle of a busy street lined with shops and restaurants on either side of the road, near the central Gävle area. As per reports by local news media outlets, the authorities arrived at the crime scene soon after, only to find that about six people were already wounded on the spot. Fortunately, no fatalities were recorded.
Although the injuries were not life-threatening, the situation was serious because most of the victims were minors, according to police spokesperson Tobias Ahlén-Svalbro. Moreover, many people had chosen to hide themselves inside a pub nearby, as a last-minute shelter from the raining bullets all across the street. Shariar Rad, a man who owns a restaurant in the area, mentioned shortly after to a local media outlet that he had left work at around 1 a.m., only to be called back by his friends after receiving the distress call.
The statement recorded by the man reads as “It felt almost chaotic, but I was allowed to go past the barriers, although not into my workplace, and my staff was sitting out on the street. Our guard had let two or three injured people in who were being bandaged up inside. It was nice to see that we were able to take care of the injured before the ambulances arrived at the scene, to be reminded of the fine human side as well.”
The six people injured in the gunfire were immediately taken to the hospital for further treatment. The prime suspect in the incident is a 14-year-old boy. While none of his personal details have been shared as of yet by the authorities, an investigation has been drawn up, and details about the real motive behind this attack are also being closely examined. Authorities have not yet provided further comments.. Until 8 a.m. local time, the area was cordoned off by the police where the shooting took place. Police have urged the public to report any information related to the shooting.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Justice, Gunnar Strömmer, described the incident as a matter of extreme recklessness in a post shared on Facebook. His post, as translated to English, read as “The night’s severe act of violence in Gävle is characterized by extreme recklessness. My heart goes out to all those affected. Crime victims, relatives, and all people in Gävle who today wake up to dark headlines and feel worry and fear of the violence and what it does to our society.”
He further added, “The incident is another dark example that the capital of violence among criminals remains large and that the risks of new violence are constantly bubbling below the surface. If it is true that the person holding the weapon is a child under 15 years old, it is another nightmare example of how violence has shrunk further down in ages. It remains to be seen what circumstances are behind. This also shows how important it is that we continue the comprehensive reshuffle of policies to push back severe violence and restore safety in society.”
