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Man stabbed to death outside Stockholm club

A man in his 20s has died in hospital after being stabbed in the stomach during a brawl close to a popular club in the capital.

Man stabbed to death outside Stockholm club
Police carry out a technical examination at the crime scene in Stockholm where a 20-year-old man was stabbed to death. Johan Nilsson / TT

The incident took place in the early hours of Sunday morning close to the 'Sommar' nightclub in the centre of the city. He was rushed to the Karolinska University Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. 

"There was some kind of fight which ended up with one person being stabbed," Fredrik Nylén of the Norrmalm police told the Expressen newspaper.

Police have arrested a man, also in his 20s, at the scene and he is being held on suspicion of murder. A knife was later confiscated.

An eyewitness told the Aftonbladet newspaper that the situation was "insane" as security guards tried to save the man's life.

Police sources said they believed that the trouble began at the club and then spilled outside. They have declined to elaborate on whether the victim was known to the man who was subsequently arrested.

"There are a number of assumptions but I do not want to give any details until we have carried out all the questioning of those involved," added Fredrik Nylén.

A number of witnesses have since been questioned by police and further witnesses will be heard today. A forensic examination of the crime scene was carried out during the morning and an investigation has begun.  

TT/The Local/pr

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CRIME

IN NUMBERS: Has Sweden’s wave of deadly gang violence peaked?

The number of deadly shootings in Sweden has fallen after hitting a record in 2022, according to the latest annual statistics from the Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention (Brå). But violent killings continued to rise and more women and youths were victims.

IN NUMBERS: Has Sweden's wave of deadly gang violence peaked?

How bad was 2023 for violent homicide in general? 

With 121 violent homicides recorded, 2023 was the worst year for murder in Sweden since 2020, when 124 people were killed in violent attacks, continuing a rising trend seen since 2021. The number of violent killings was up 4 percent on 2022, when 116 people were killed. 

It’s worth pointing out, however, that this is still lower than the 129 people who died of “murder, manslaughter or violent attack” in Sweden back in 1989,  when the population was nearly 20 percent lower. 

The graph below shows how the number of violent homicides in Sweden rose sharply in about 2014, after which it has seen a gradual but unsteady increase.  

Homicides in Sweden between 2013 and 2023. Source: Brå
 
What about deadly shootings?
 
When it comes to the gang shootings that have dominated headlines in Sweden in recent years, there were signs of improvement, with 53 people shot dead in 2023, down from a record 63 in 2022.  
 
It’s hardly great news though, as 2023 still witnessed the second highest number of deadly shootings ever recorded in Sweden. 
 
The number of fatal stabbings also increased slightly in 2023 to 41 from 35 in 2022. 

 

Deadly shootings, stabbings and other forms of violent murder between 2013 and 2023. Source: Brå
 
Tragically, in 2023, gang criminals in Sweden increasingly began to target the relatives and loved ones of their rivals and also to use minors in their gang wars, leading to a spike in the number of women and youths killed. 
 
Ten more women and nine more people under the age of 18 died in violent attacks in 2023 than in 2022, pushing the number of female victims to 33 and the number of youth victims to 17. 
 
“This year more minors and women have been homicide victims compared with the year before,” Jan Lundbeck, a statistician at the council said in a press release. “This is partly a result of conflicts in criminal circles which had had deadly consequences in which people under the ae of 18 and even women have been affected.” 

Ten of the 33 women killed were in a relationship with their killer, the same number as in 2022. 

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