The cost of a gang criminal to taxpayers

Economist Ingvar Nilsson has calculated the cost to taxpayers of an average gang criminal who is active for 15 years. The answer is more than 23 million SEK. He estimates that a shooting with two injured costs society 75 million SEK.

Gang crime is spreading throughout Sweden and costs society enormous sums for, among other things, police work, healthcare, the court system, and correctional facilities.

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According to the police, there are 14,000 individuals active in criminal networks, and if each of these were to cost society 23 million SEK, the bill for taxpayers would amount to 322 billion SEK, Nilsson argues, and emphasizes that the costs could also increase further in the future.

“We arrived at that sum when we looked at the trials against the Södertälje network a few years ago. We have delved into databases, but above all, conducted many interviews and workshops with individuals involved, from perpetrators and crime victims to police officers, healthcare workers, judges, and social services employees,” says Nilsson to GP.