View source for Crime in Sweden

{{Short description|none}} <!-- "none" is preferred when the title is sufficiently descriptive; see [[WP:SDNONE]] -->
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2018}}
{{Update|part=Parts dependent on older Swedish Crime Surveys (the newest SCS is from 2019)|date=January 2020}}
{{Primary sources|date=August 2021}} 
[[File:BRÅ Totalt anmälda brott i Sverige per 100k 1975-2018.png|400px|thumb|Number of reported crimes per 100 thousand inhabitants in Sweden, 1975–2018{{update inline|date=November 2024|reason=This data is more than six years old}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://statistik.bra.se/solwebb/action/index|title=Statistics database|website=statistik.bra.se|publisher=[[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]]|access-date=2019-05-20}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|reason=Cite is to statistics and figures from the Swedish government|date=February 2024}}]]

'''Crime in Sweden''' is defined by the Swedish Penal Code ({{langx|sv|brottsbalken}}) and in other [[Law of Sweden|Swedish laws]] and statutory instruments.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Swedish Penal Code|url=http://www.government.se/content/1/c6/02/77/77/cb79a8a3.pdf|publisher=[[Government of Sweden]]|access-date=15 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141019175715/http://www.government.se/content/1/c6/02/77/77/cb79a8a3.pdf|archive-date=19 October 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Law 1994:458|url=http://lagen.nu/1962:700#K1P1S1|website=Lagen.nu}}</ref>

According to the [[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]], the number of reported crimes in Sweden has increased when measured from the 1950s, consistent with other [[Western world|Western]] countries in the [[post-war|postwar era]], which they say can be explained by a number of factors, such as statistical and legislative changes and increased public willingness to report crime.<ref name=crime-trend-stats-1 />

==Legal proceedings==
{{See also|Judicial system of Sweden#Courts|Law enforcement in Sweden}}
[[File:Örebro tingsrätt May 2014.jpg|thumb|278x278px|A [[District courts of Sweden|District Court]] in [[Örebro]]. District courts handle criminal cases in Sweden]]
When a crime has been committed the authorities will investigate what has happened, this is known as the preliminary investigation and it will be led by a police officer or prosecutor.<ref name=trials>{{cite web|title=Trials in criminal cases|url=http://www.hogstadomstolen.se/Funktioner/English/Legal-proceedings/Trials-in-criminal-cases/|publisher=[[Supreme Court of Sweden]]|access-date=17 July 2014}}</ref> The Swedish police and the prosecution service are required to register and prosecute all offences of which they become aware.<ref name="VonHofer" /><ref name="diskussionsunderlag" /><ref name=duty-prosecute>{{cite web|title=Duty to prosecute|url=http://www.aklagare.se/In-English/The-role-of-the-prosecutor/Decision-to-prosecute/Duty-to-prosecute/|publisher=The Swedish Prosecution Authority|access-date=17 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140726234940/http://www.aklagare.se/In-English/The-role-of-the-prosecutor/Decision-to-prosecute/Duty-to-prosecute/|archive-date=26 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> The prosecutors are lawyers employed by the [[Swedish Prosecution Authority]], a wholly independent organization not dependent on courts or the police, and not directed by the [[Ministry of Justice (Sweden)|Ministry of Justice]] (any [[Ministerstyre|ministerial interference]] is in fact unconstitutional).<ref name=about-prosecution>{{cite web|title=The Swedish Prosecution Authority|url=http://www.aklagare.se/In-English/|publisher=The Swedish Prosecution Authority|access-date=17 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101217230139/http://www.aklagare.se/In-English/|archive-date=17 December 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The prosecutor are obliged to lead and direct the preliminary investigations of a crime impartially and objective, make decisions on prosecution issues, and appear in court to process actions in criminal cases. Suspects are entitled to a public defense counsel, either during the preliminary investigation stage or during the trial. The suspect is entitled to examine the material gathered by the prosecutor, and is allowed to request the police to conduct further investigation, if he or she considers this to be necessary. A preliminary investigation supervisor decides whether or not these measures can be carried out.<ref>{{cite web|title=Suspect|url=http://www.aklagare.se/In-English/Are-you/Suspect/|publisher=The Swedish Prosecution Authority|access-date=17 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140727012957/http://www.aklagare.se/In-English/Are-you/Suspect/|archive-date=27 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In the case of less serious crimes, if the suspect admits that he/she has committed the offence and it is clear what the punishment should be, the prosecutor can pronounce a so-called order of summary punishment.<ref name="trials" /><ref>{{cite web|title=Summary punishment|url=http://www.aklagare.se/In-English/The-role-of-the-prosecutor/Decision-to-prosecute/Summary-punishment/|publisher=The Swedish Prosecution Authority|access-date=17 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140726234427/http://www.aklagare.se/In-English/The-role-of-the-prosecutor/Decision-to-prosecute/Summary-punishment/|archive-date=26 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> A preliminary investigation not discontinued may result in the prosecutor deciding to prosecute a person for the crime. This means that there will be a trial at the [[District courts of Sweden|District Court]].<ref name="trials" /> The person who has been convicted, the prosecutor and the victim of the crime can appeal against the District Court judgement in the [[Courts of appeal in Sweden|Court of Appeal]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Appealing a criminal case|url=http://www.hogstadomstolen.se/Funktioner/English/Legal-proceedings/Trials-in-criminal-cases/Appeal/|publisher=[[Supreme Court of Sweden]]|access-date=17 July 2014}}</ref>

===Confidence in the criminal justice system===
Six out of ten respondents surveyed in the SCS 2013 said they had a high level of confidence in the criminal justice system as a whole, and the police enjoyed similarly high confidence levels. Of the crime victims, a little over half of all surveyed (57%) stated that their experience of the police was generally positive, and nearly one in seven stated that the experience was negative.<ref name="SCS2013">{{cite web|url=http://www.bra.se/download/18.9eaaede145606cc86546f/1398774378897/2014_Swedish_Crime_Survey_2013.pdf|title=The Swedish Crime Survey 2013|publisher=[[Brå]]|access-date=16 July 2014}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|reason=Cite is to statistics and figures from the Swedish government|date=February 2024}}

==Corruption==
{{Main|Corruption in Sweden}}
In general, the level of [[Political corruption|corruption]] in [[Sweden]] is very low.<ref>{{cite web|title=Motståndskraft, oberoende, integritet – kan det svenska samhället stå emot korruption?|url=http://www.business-anti-corruption.com/media/3831417/TI-Sverige_ENIS_studie-2.pdf|work=Transparency International Sweden|access-date=17 November 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203052802/http://www.business-anti-corruption.com/media/3831417/TI-Sverige_ENIS_studie-2.pdf|archive-date=3 December 2013}}</ref> The legal and institutional framework in Sweden are considered effective in fighting against corruption, and the government agencies are characterized by a high degree of transparency, integrity and accountability.<ref>{{cite web|title=Snapshot of the Sweden Country Profile|url=http://www.business-anti-corruption.com/country-profiles/europe-central-asia/sweden/snapshot.aspx|work=Business Anti-Corruption Portal|publisher=GAN Integrity Solutions|access-date=17 November 2013}}</ref>

Since 2015, corruption levels have been rising<ref>{{cite web | last=Ekerlid | first=Erik | title=Rekord i svensk korruption – "Kan fiffla helt straffritt" | website=Tidningen Näringslivet | date=2021-04-22 | url=https://www.tn.se/naringsliv/36197/rekord-i-svensk-korruption-kan-fiffla-helt-straffritt/ | language=sv | access-date=2024-05-12| quote=Mutor, riggade affärer och obstruktion av offentliga handlingar. Korruptionen i svenska myndigheter och kommuner blir allt värre, konstaterar Olle Lundin, professor i förvaltningsrätt och expert på korruption. ”Respekten de senaste tio åren har verkligen försämrats”, säger han till TN.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=Korruptionsgranskare om Sverige: Fortsatt negativ utveckling | website=Europaportalen | date=2024-01-30 | url=https://www.europaportalen.se/2024/01/korruptionsgranskare-om-sverige-fortsatt-negativ-utveckling | language=sv | access-date=2024-05-12| quote=Den fortsatt negativa utvecklingen kräver nu att regeringen tar ett samlat och systematiskt grepp kring arbetet mot korruption i Sverige, sade Ulrik Åshuvud i ett uttalande. Den negativa svenska utvecklingen har pågått sedan 2015.}}</ref> and the country has steadily fallen in international anti-corruption rankings.<ref>{{cite web | last=| first=| title=Sverige allt mer korrupt | website=SVT Nyheter | date=2024-01-30 | url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/sverige-allt-mer-korrupt | language=sv | access-date=2024-05-12}}</ref><ref name="o520">{{cite news | last=| first=| title=Korruptionen ökar i Sverige| website=Sveriges Radio | date=2024-01-30 | url=https://sverigesradio.se/artikel/korruptionen-okar-i-sverige | language=sv | access-date=2024-05-12}}</ref> Research conducted by [[Linköping University]] hinted at a risk of underestimated corruption levels in the country.<ref>{{cite web | last=Roslund | first=Jonas | title=Risk att korruption underskattas i Sverige | website=Linköpings universitet | date=2016-12-12 | url=https://liu.se/nyhet/risk-att-korruption-underskattas-i-sverige | language=sv | access-date=2024-05-12|quote= }}</ref>

==Crime statistics==
{{Further|Crime in Sweden#Crime trends}}
[[File:Sweden-crime-1976-2016-robbery-sex-murder.svg|thumb|right|400px|Comparison of reported crimes in Sweden from 1976 to 2016 in robbery, total sex offenses, rape and murder per 100,000 population.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.bra.se/download/18.22a7170813a0d141d21800062993/1396429274906/10La_anm2_fr1950.xls|title=Tabell 1.2. Anmälda brott per 100 000 av medelfolkmängden, åren 1950–2016|date=2017|publisher=BRÅ}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|reason=Cite is to statistics and figures from the Swedish government|date=February 2024}}]]

Sweden began recording national crime statistics in 1950, and the method for recording crime has basically remained unchanged until the mid-1960s, when the [[Swedish police]] introduced new procedures for crime statistics, which have been presented as a partial explanation for the historical increase in crime reports.<ref name=crime-trend-stats-1>{{cite web|title=Rapport 2008:23 - Brottsutvecklingen i sverige fram till år 2007|url=http://www.bra.se/download/18.cba82f7130f475a2f180006972/2008_23_brottsuvecklingen.pdf|publisher=[[Brå]]|access-date=15 July 2014|pages=38, 41|language=sv|quote=I Sverige har den registrerade brottsligheten precis som i övriga västvärlden ökat kraftigt under efterkrigstiden. [...] Vid mitten av 1960-talet införde Polisen nya rutiner av statistikföring en vilket har framförts som en delförklaring till den kraftiga ökningen, i synnerhet i början av denna period (Brå 2004). [...] Detta beror sannolikt främst på att toleransen mot vålds- och sexualbrott har minskat i samhället. Att man i samhället tar våld på större allvar demonstreras inte minst genom att synen på olika våldshandlingar skärpts i lagstiftningen (ibid. samt kapitlet Sexualbrott)}}</ref> In 1974, the [[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]] ({{langx|sv|Brottsförebyggande rådet}}, abbreviated Brå) became the [[government agency]] tasked with producing [[official statistics]] and disseminating knowledge on crime.<ref>{{cite web|title=About Brå|url=http://www.bra.se/bra/bra-in-english/home/about-bra.html|publisher=The Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention|access-date=14 May 2014}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|reason=Cite is to statistics and figures from the Swedish government|date=February 2024}} In the early 1990s a new crime reporting system was implemented, which meant that the manual controls became less frequent, resulting in an additional increase in the number of reported crimes.<ref name=crime-trend-stats-2>{{cite web|title=Rapport 2008:23 - Brottsutvecklingen i sverige fram till år 2007|url=http://www.bra.se/download/18.cba82f7130f475a2f180006972/2008_23_brottsuvecklingen.pdf|publisher=[[Brå]]|access-date=16 July 2014|page=61|language=sv|quote=Den stora ökningen av antalet anmälda brott sedan början 1990-talet förklaras i huvudsak av det anmälningssystem som polisen då införde}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|reason=Cite is to statistics and figures from the Swedish government|date=February 2024}}

In January 2017, the [[Löfven I Cabinet|Löfven cabinet]] denied the request from member parliament [[Staffan Danielsson]] to update the [[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention|BRÅ]] statistics on crime with respect to national or immigration background of the perpetrator, as had previously been done in 1995, 2005 but the 2015 was overdue.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/krav-ny-undersokning-av-utrikesfodda-och-brott|title=Krav på att Brå tar fram statistik över brott och ursprung|last=Nyheter|first=SVT|work=svt.se|access-date=23 May 2017|language=sv}}</ref>

According to a 2013 Swedish Crime Survey (SCS) by the [[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]], exposure to crime decreased from 2005 to 2013.<ref name=SCS2014>{{cite web|title=The Swedish Crime Survey 2013 - English summary of Brå report 2014:1|url=http://www.bra.se/download/18.9eaaede145606cc86546f/1398774378897/2014_Swedish_Crime_Survey_2013.pdf|publisher=The [[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]]|access-date=15 July 2014|pages=5, 7}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|reason=Cite is to statistics and figures from the Swedish government|date=February 2024}} Since 2014, reports from the Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention say that there has been an increase in exposure to some categories of crimes, including fraud, some property crime and sexual offences according to the 2016 SCS.<ref name="bra2017-2"/>{{rp|5–7}}{{Primary source inline|reason=Cite is to statistics and figures from the Swedish government|date=February 2024}} Crimes falling under threats, harassment, assault and robbery continued to climb through 2018.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bra.se/bra-in-english/home/crime-and-statistics/swedish-crime-survey.html|title=Swedish Crime Survey|website=www.bra.se|language=en|access-date=2020-01-20}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|reason=Cite is to statistics and figures from the Swedish government|date=February 2024}} The increase in reports of sexual offenses is, in part, due to campaigns to encourage reporting, combined with changes to the laws that broadened the legal definition of rape.<ref name=facts>{{cite web|url=http://www.government.se/articles/2017/02/facts-about-migration-and-crime-in-sweden/|title=Facts about migration and crime in Sweden|first=Regeringen och|last=Regeringskansliet|date=23 February 2017|website=Regeringskansliet|access-date=16 December 2017}}</ref>

The figures for fraud and property damage (excluding car theft) are in contrast with the numbers of reported crimes under such categories which have remained roughly constant over the period 2014–16.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thelocal.se/20170112/swedens-2016-crime-stats-analyzed|title=Here are Sweden's crime stats for 2016|date=12 January 2017 |access-date=6 March 2017}}</ref> The number of reported sexual offences clearly reflect the figures in the 2016 SCS, and car related damages/theft are also somewhat reflected.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bra.se/bra/brott-och-statistik/valdtakt-och-sexualbrott.html|title=Rape & Sexual Offences|date=16 January 2017|website=bra.se|archive-url=https://archive.today/20170221212501/https://www.bra.se/bra/brott-och-statistik/valdtakt-och-sexualbrott.html|archive-date=21 February 2017|url-status=dead|access-date=17 March 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.brottsrummet.se/sv/sexualbrott |title=Sexual Offences |website=Brottsrummet |archive-url=https://archive.today/20170317143743/http://www.brottsrummet.se/sv/sexualbrott |archive-date=17 March 2017 |url-status=dead |access-date=17 March 2017 }}</ref> The number of convictions up to 2013 has remained between 110,000 and 130,000 in the 2000s — a decrease since the 1970s, when they numbered around 300,000 — despite the population growth.<ref>{{cite web|title=Personer lagförda för brott|page=5|language=sv|url=http://www.bra.se/download/18.1ff479c3135e8540b29800013251/1338449406369/Sammanfattning_lagforda_2011.pdf|publisher=[[Brå]]|access-date=15 July 2014}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|reason=Cite is to statistics and figures from the Swedish government|date=February 2024}}

In November 2023, The Guardian published five charts suggesting that violence is linked with poverty, inequality, and narcotics.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/nov/30/how-gang-violence-took-hold-of-sweden-in-five-charts|title=How gang violence took hold of Sweden – in five charts|work=The Guardian|date=2023-11-30}}</ref>

===International comparison===
Comparisons between countries based on official crime statistics (i.e. "crime reports") require caution, since such statistics are produced differently in different countries. Legal and substantive factors also influence the number of reported crimes.<ref name=VonHofer>{{cite journal|last1=Von Hofer|first1=Hanns|title=Crime Statistics as Constructs: The Case of Swedish Rape Statistics|journal=European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research|date=2000|volume=8|issue=1|pages=77–89|doi=10.1023/A:1008713631586|s2cid=195221128 }}<!--|access-date=11 July 2014--></ref><ref name=diskussionsunderlag>{{cite book|title=Våldsbrottsligheten: Ökande, minskande eller konstant? Ett diskussionsunderlag|year = 2007|url=http://dspace.mah.se/dspace/bitstream/handle/2043/4071/Holmbergs%20FoU%202007%201.pdf;jsessionid=B970C288930530A61DDD95DF9B718B8F?sequence=1|isbn=978-91-7104-207-1|language=sv|publisher=[[Malmö University]]|access-date=16 July 2014}}</ref><ref name="explained-official">{{cite web|title=Crime statistics|url=http://www.bra.se/bra/bra-in-english/home/crime-and-statistics/crime-statistics.html|publisher=[[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]]|access-date=15 July 2014|archive-date=19 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170319134514/http://www.bra.se/bra/bra-in-english/home/crime-and-statistics/crime-statistics.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Kodning av brott - Anvisningar och regler|url=http://www.bra.se/download/18.607587db133acdc54dc80003110/Brottskodningslistan-2011+v10.pdf|publisher=[[Brå]]|access-date=16 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923194242/http://www.bra.se/download/18.607587db133acdc54dc80003110/Brottskodningslistan-2011+v10.pdf|archive-date=23 September 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> For example:

* Sweden applies a system of expansive offence counts for [[violent crime]]s, meaning the same crime may be recorded several times, such as in the case of a [[Marital rape|spousal rape]]<ref>{{Cite news|date=2012-09-14|title=Sweden's rape rate under the spotlight|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-19592372|access-date=2021-02-28}}</ref> or [[gang rape]]. Many other countries employ more restrictive methods of counting.<ref name="VonHofer" /><ref name="diskussionsunderlag" />
* In Sweden, crime data is collected when the offence in question is first reported, at which point the classification of the offence may be unclear.<ref name="VonHofer" /><ref name="diskussionsunderlag" /> It retains this classification in the published crime statistics, even if later investigations indicate that no crime has been committed.<ref name="VonHofer" />
* The Swedish police and the [[Law enforcement in Sweden#Swedish Prosecution Authority|prosecution service]] are required to register and prosecute all offences of which they become aware. This can be assumed to lead to a more frequent registration of offences than in systems where the classification of offences is negotiable on the basis of [[plea bargaining]].<ref name="VonHofer" /><ref name="diskussionsunderlag" />
* Willingness to report crime also affects the statistics.<ref name="explained-official" /> A police force and judicial system enjoining a high level of confidence and a good reputation with the public will produce a higher propensity to report crime than a police force which is discredited, inspires fear or distrust.<ref name="VonHofer" />

Large-scale [[victim study|victimisation surveys]] have been presented as a more reliable indicator on the level of crime in a given country.<ref name="VonHofer" />

==Crime trends==
{{See also|Vulnerable areas in Sweden}}

===Offences against the person===
The level of exposure to offences against the person has decreased somewhat since 2005 (down from 13.1% to 11.4%), according to SCS 2013. Crimes in this group includes assault, threat, sexual offences, mugging, fraud or harassment. In the recently published SCS 2016, exposure to offences has increased to levels as seen prior to 2005, with 13.3% of the people surveyed reporting that they had been victim to one or more of the aforementioned crimes.<ref name="bra2017-2">{{cite journal |last1=Command |first1=Carl |last2=Hambrook |first2=Emelie |last3=Wallin |first3=Sanna |last4=Westerberg |first4=Sara |last5=Stri |first5=Åsa Irlander |last6=Hvitfeld |first6=Thomas |title=Swedish Crime Survey 2016 - English summary of 2016 Brå report 2017:1 |journal=The Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention |date=2017 |volume=2017 |issue=2 |url=https://bra.se/download/18.4a33c027159a89523b17c401/1487173975453/Summary_NTU_2016.pdf |publisher=Brottsförebyggande rådet (Brå) |location=Stockholm |issn=1100-6676 |id=URN:NBN:SE:BRA-697}}</ref>{{rp|6}}

Around one in four (26%) surveyed report having experienced these crimes in 2015.<ref name="bra2017-2"/>

====Assault====
While the number of reported assaults has been on the increase, crime victim surveys show that a large part of the increase may be due to the fact that more crimes are actually reported.<ref name=bra-assault>{{cite web|title=Violence and assault|url=http://www.bra.se/bra/bra-in-english/home/crime-and-statistics/violence-and-assault.html|publisher=[[Brå]]|access-date=16 July 2014}}</ref> According to the 2013 SCS, the proportion who stated that they have been the victims of assault has declined gradually, from 2.7 per cent in 2005 to 1.9 per cent in 2012. The proportion who are anxious about falling victim to assault has also decreased, from 15 per cent in 2006 to 10 per cent in 2013.<ref name="SCS2013" /> This is supported by medical services reporting unchanged levels of incoming patients with wounds derived from assault or serious violent crime.<ref name="bra-assault" /><ref name=crime-trend-2007>{{cite web|title=Rapport 2008:23 - Brottsutvecklingen i sverige fram till år 2007|language=sv|url=http://www.bra.se/download/18.cba82f7130f475a2f180006972/2008_23_brottsuvecklingen.pdf|publisher=[[Brå]]|access-date=15 July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Estrada|first1=Felipe|title=Våldsutvecklingen i Sverige - En presentation och analys av sjukvårdsdata|date=2005|publisher=Swedish Institute for Futures Studies|location=Stockholm|isbn=978-91-89655-62-1|url=http://www.iffs.se/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/20051201134809film242m7Rh6IK5vOE2k361.pdf|language=sv|quote=Nothing in the hospital data indicates an increase in hospital admissions resulting from serious violent incidents [...] Instead the hospital data serve to verify the more stable trends indicated by victim surveys and lethal violence statistics|access-date=12 August 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924033103/http://www.iffs.se/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/20051201134809film242m7Rh6IK5vOE2k361.pdf|archive-date=24 September 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> Studies have also shown that police are increasingly likely to personally initiate reports of assault between strangers, which contributes to more cases involving assault being reported.<ref>{{cite web|title=Rapport 2009:16 - Misshandel mellan obekanta|language=sv|url=https://www.bra.se/download/18.cba82f7130f475a2f180001710/1309943407691/2009_16_misshandel_mellan_obekanta.pdf|access-date=16 July 2014|ref=[[Brå]]}}</ref>

In the recently published 2016 SCS 2.0 per cent of the population (ages 16–79) were exposed to assault. Over time, exposure to assault has decreased somewhat, and the percentage of victims has declined by 0.7 percentage points since the survey was first conducted in 2005, reaching its lowest point in 2012 and rising slightly since then. The primary reduction has been among young men.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|last=tagesschau.de|title=Schwedens Banden-Problem|url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/europa/schweden-kriminalitaet-101.html|access-date=2021-08-21|website=tagesschau.de|language=de}}</ref>

Exposure to assault is more common for men than women, and most common in the 20–24 age bracket. Assault is most common in a public place and in most cases the perpetrator is unknown to the victim.<ref name="bra2017-2"/>{{rp|5–7}}

Sweden has a high rate of reported assault crime when compared internationally,<ref name="www-rohan.sdsu.edu">{{cite web |url=http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/faculty/rwinslow/europe/sweden.html |title=Comparative Criminology &#124; Europe - Sweden |access-date=4 November 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101219004356/http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/faculty/rwinslow/europe/sweden.html |archive-date=19 December 2010 }}</ref> but this can be explained by legal, procedural and statistical differences.{{ref label|id1|Note 1|1}} For example, the Swedish police applies a system of expansive offence counts for violent crimes, meaning the same crime may be recorded several times.<ref name="diskussionsunderlag" /> The 2005 European Crime and Safety Survey (2005 EU ICS) found that prevalence victimisation rates for assaults with force was below average in Sweden.<ref name="2005-EUICS">{{cite web|author1=Van Dijk|title=The Burden of Crime in the EU. Research Report: A Comparative Analysis of the European Crime and Safety Survey (EU ICS) 2005|url=http://www.unicri.it/services/library_documentation/publications/icvs/publications/EUICS_-_The_Burden_of_Crime_in_the_EU.pdf|publisher=[[UNICRI]]|access-date=16 July 2014|year=2005|display-authors=etal|archive-date=25 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200325183159/http://www.unicri.it/services/library_documentation/publications/icvs/publications/EUICS_-_The_Burden_of_Crime_in_the_EU.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==== Threats ====
In 2015, 5.0 per cent were exposed to threats. The percentage of persons exposed to threats remained at a relatively stable level between 2005 and 2014.<ref name="bra2017-2" />{{rp|5–7}}

Exposure to threats is more common among women than men, and most common in the 20–24 and 25–34 age brackets.<ref name=":2" />

====Murder and homicide====
{{See also|Murder (Swedish law)}}

The number of cases of lethal violence (Murder, manslaughter, and assault with a lethal outcome) in Sweden remained at a relatively constant level over the period of 2002 to 2016 — on average 92 cases per year.<ref name="bra-murder" />

Since 2015 there has been an increase in the number of cases of lethal violence and the figure in 2017 was the highest in Sweden since 2002.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/a/7lQKBK/bra-allt-fler-offer-for-dodligt-vald-i-sverige|title=Brå: Allt fler offer för dödligt våld i Sverige|last=Aftonbladet|work=Aftonbladet|access-date=22 June 2018|language=sv-SE}}</ref><ref name="BRADV">{{Cite web |url=https://www.bra.se/download/18.10aae67f160e3eba62938176/1522248310076/Sammanfattning_D%C3%B6dligtv%C3%A5ld_2017.pdf |title=Konstaterade fall av dödligt våld - En granskning av anmält dödligt våld 2017 |website=Brottsförebyggande rådet}}</ref>

Studies of lethal violence in Sweden have shown that more than half the reported cases were not actually cases of murder or manslaughter. This is because the Swedish crime statistics show all events with a lethal outcome that the police investigate. Many of these reported crimes turn out to be, in reality, suicides, accidents or natural deaths.<ref name="crime-trend-2007" /><ref name="bra-murder" /> 
Despite this statistical anomaly, Sweden has an internationally low murder and homicide rate,{{ref label|id2|Note 2|1}} with approximately 1.14 reported incidents of murder or manslaughter per 100,000 inhabitants as of 2015. The number of "confirmed cases of lethal violence" has fluctuated between 68 and 112 in the period of 2006&ndash;2015, with a decrease from 111 in 2007 to 68 in 2012, followed by an increase to 112 in 2015 and a decrease to 106 in 2016.<ref name="bra-murder">{{cite web|title=Murder and manslaughter|url=http://www.bra.se/bra/bra-in-english/home/crime-and-statistics/murder-and-manslaughter.html|publisher=[[Brå]]|access-date=26 November 2017}}</ref> 
<ref name="Kriminalstatistik2015">{{cite web|title=Kriminalstatistik 2015|language=sv|url=https://www.bra.se/download/18.358de3051533ffea5ea7e97f/1459408698057/Sammanfattning_D%C3%B6dligtv%C3%A5ld_2015.pdf|publisher=[[Brå]]|access-date=27 February 2017}}</ref><ref name="BRA-lethal-2016">{{Cite web |url=https://www.bra.se/download/18.5484e1ab15ad731149e3a819/1490966077117/Sammanfattning_D%C3%B6dligtv%C3%A5ld_2016.pdf |title=Kriminalstatistik 2016 Konstaterade fall av dödligt våld |access-date=26 November 2017}}</ref> Around 75% of those murdered are men.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bra.se/bra/brott-och-statistik/mord-och-drap.html|title=Mord och dråp - Brå|work=www.bra.se|access-date=25 January 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150205222019/http://www.bra.se/bra/brott-och-statistik/mord-och-drap.html|archive-date=5 February 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> Most cases (71% in 2015) were reported in one of the major metropolitan regions of [[Stockholm]], [[West Sweden|Väst]] and [[Skåne]]. The largest increase in 2015 was seen in the Väst region, where the number of cases has increased from 14 cases in 2014 to 34 cases in 2015.<ref name="bra-murder" />

In 2016 ten out of the 105 murder cases were [[honor killing]]s, representing roughly 10% of all murder cases and a third of all [[Violence against women|murders of women]] in Sweden.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.gp.se/nyheter/sverige/var-tionde-mord-f%C3%B6rra-%C3%A5ret-var-hedersmord-1.4509333|title=Var tionde mord förra året var hedersmord|work=Göteborgs-Posten|access-date=8 August 2017|language=sv}}</ref>

In May 2017 a survey by ''[[Dagens Nyheter]]'' showed that of 100 suspects of murder and attempted murder using firearms, 90 had one parent born abroad and 75% were born in the 90s.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.dn.se/nyheter/sverige/vanligt-med-utlandsk-bakgrund-bland-unga-man-som-skjuter/|title=Vanligt med utländsk bakgrund bland unga män som skjuter - DN.SE|date=20 May 2017|work=[[Dagens Nyheter]]|access-date=20 July 2017|language=sv-se}}</ref>

According to a comparison of crime statistics from the Norwegian [[Kripos|National Criminal Investigation Service]] (Kripos) and the [[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]] (Brå) done by Norwegian daily newspaper ''[[Aftenposten]]'', the murder rate of Sweden has since 2002 been roughly twice that of neighbour country [[Norway]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.aftenposten.no/verden/i/GVLRV/Svensk-politi-skulle-ta-tilbake-kontrollen-over-utsatte-bydeler-fra-kriminelle-To-ar-senere-er-situasjonen-blitt-enda-verre-|title=Svensk politi skulle ta tilbake kontrollen over lovløse områder. To år senere er situasjonen blitt enda verre.|work=Aftenposten|access-date=12 August 2017}}</ref>

==== Stabbings ====
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|caption=Number of people having sought healthcare for knife wounds 2012-2019<ref name="tv4_knife_violence">{{Cite web|title=Antalet knivdåd ökar för sjunde året i rad|url=https://www.tv4play.se/program/nyheterna/13283396|access-date=2020-07-23|website=www.tv4play.se}}</ref>
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Knife violence is more common in close relationships, in homes and among [[Social vulnerability|socially vulnerable]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=2019-07-18 |title=Kniv vanligaste mordvapnet |language=sv |work=SVT Nyheter |url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/snabbkollen/kniv-vanligaste-mordvapnet |access-date=2023-09-08}}</ref> The number of people treated for knife violence increased by 25% between 2015–2019.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Larsson |first1=Jens |date=2020-12-08 |title=Rekordmånga kan falla offer för dödligt knivvåld i år |language=sv |work=SVT Nyheter |url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/lokalt/stockholm/det-dodliga-knivvaldet-hogst-under-hela-2000-talet |access-date=2023-09-08}}</ref> Among young people, knife violence has decreased successively since the beginning of the 90s, and remained at the same level between 2015–2020.<ref>{{Cite news |first1=Jennie |last1=Wahlgren |first2=Markus |last2=Botsjö |date=2023-06-02 |title=Kriminologen: Senaste tidens attacker typiska för knivvåldet |language=sv |work=SVT Nyheter |url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/kriminologen-senaste-tidens-knivskarningar-typiska-for-knivvaldet |access-date=2023-09-08}}</ref>

==== Gun violence ====
{{excerpt|Gun violence in Sweden}}

===== Innocent bystanders =====
{{#section-h:Gun violence in Sweden|Innocent bystanders}}

==== Hand grenade attacks and bombings ====
{{Main|Bombings in Sweden}}
{{See also|List of grenade attacks in Sweden}}
{{image frame
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As of 2019, Sweden is experiencing an unprecedented number of bombings and explosions, though comparisons with previous years are difficult since the criminal use of explosives was not a separate crime category until 2017.<ref name="bbc.com/news/"/> In 2018 there were 162 explosions, and in the first nine months of 2019 97 explosions were registered, usually carried out by criminal gangs.

The number of hand grenade detonations in particular has been unusually high, especially in 2016. According to criminologists Manne Gerell and Amir Rostami, the only other country that keeps track of hand grenade explosions is [[Mexico]]. While Mexico has a murder rate 20 times that of Sweden, on the specific category of grenade explosions per capita the two countries may be comparable.<ref name="bbc.com/news/"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://mgerell.blogspot.com/2017/09/fortydligande-om-internationell.html/|title=Förtydligande om internationell jämförelse av handgranatsdetonationer|date=2017-09-11|website=Kriminologiska funderingar blog|language=sv|access-date=2019-12-27|archive-date=5 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191105112649/http://mgerell.blogspot.com/2017/09/fortydligande-om-internationell.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> According to Swedish police commissioner [[Anders Thornberg]] "No international equivalent to Sweden's wave of bombings".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thelocal.se/20191108/swedish-police-chief-no-international-equivalent-to-swedens-wave-of-bombings|title=Swedish police chief: No international equivalent to Sweden's wave of bombings|date=8 November 2019|author=Johannes Ledel|website=[[The Local]]}}</ref> These attacks occurs in both rich and low-income places. Swedish police do not record or release the ethnicity of convicted criminals, but Linda H Straaf head of intelligence at [[National Operations Department]] says they are from poor areas and many are second- or third-generation immigrants.

While [[Media of Sweden|Swedish media]] sometimes are accused of not covering the topic enough, a 2019 study by polling company Kantar Sifo found that law and order was the most covered news topic on Swedish TV and radio and on social media.<ref name="bbc.com/news/">{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-50339977|title=Sweden's 100 explosions this year: What's going on?|author=Maddy Savage|location=Stockholm|date=12 November 2019|website=[[BBC]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/04/sweden-bomb-attacks-reach-unprecedented-level-as-gangs-feud|title=Sweden bomb attacks reach unprecedented level as gangs feud|date=4 November 2019|author=Jon Henley|website=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref>

In 2018, a [[New York Times]] article said that gang violence was becoming more frequent, in part because of an increase in weapons flowing over the border with neighboring Denmark.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/03/world/europe/sweden-crime-immigration-hand-grenades.html|title=Hand Grenades and Gang Violence Rattle Sweden's Middle Class|last=Anderson|first=Ellen Barry and Christina|newspaper=The New York Times |date=3 March 2018 |access-date=2018-08-15|language=en}}</ref>

In 2019, [[Denmark]], worried about the bombings in Sweden, introduced [[passport control]]s for the first time since the 1950s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/13/world/europe/denmark-border-sweden.html|title=Denmark, Worried About Bombings by Swedish Gangs, Begins Border Checks|author=Martin Selsoe Sorensen|location=Denmark|date=13 November 2019|website=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref>

While gun homicides were on the rise in the 2011-2018 time span, according to a study at Malmö University the number of hand grenade attacks had shown a strong increase in the same period and a total of 116 hand grenade detonations were recorded. The number of hand grenade attacks increased from two in 2011 to 39 in 2016 where the latter was a record year. Of the hand grenade attacks, 28% are directed towards individuals and the remainder towards police stations and other buildings. Two people have been killed and about ten have been injured.<ref name="svt2018_hand_grenades"/>

In January 2018, a 63-year-old man was killed when he found a grenade on his way to a supermarket with his wife. Thinking it was a toy, he picked it up and was killed when it detonated. In 2016 an 8-year-old boy was killed when a hand grenade was thrown into an apartment in Biskopsgården as part of crime gang warfare.<ref name="svt2018_hand_grenades"/>

Criminologists in Sweden don't know why there was a strong increase and why Sweden has a much higher rate than countries close by.<ref name="svt2018_hand_grenades">{{Cite news|url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/116-granatattacker-pa-atta-ar-sverige-sticker-ut|title=116 granatattacker på åtta år – Sverige sticker ut|date=2018-12-10|website=SVT Nyheter|language=sv|access-date=2018-12-11|last1=Salihu|first1=Diamant}}</ref>

====Sex crimes====
{{See also|Rape in Sweden|Prostitution in Sweden}}
{{image frame
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|caption=Percentage stating they were victims of sexual crime 2006–2017<ref name="ntu2018">{{Cite web|url=https://bra.se/statistik/statistiska-undersokningar/nationella-trygghetsundersokningen.html|title=Nationella trygghetsundersökningen 2018 / Tabell 1 pdf page 7|date=16 November 2018|website=bra.se [[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]]|access-date=20 November 2018}}</ref>
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A long-standing tradition of [[gender equality]] policy and legislation, as well as an established women's movement, have led to several legislative changes and amendments, greatly expanding the sex crime legislation.<ref name="paradox">{{cite news|last=Nordlander|first=Jenny|title=Fler brott bedöms som våldtäkt|url=https://www.dn.se/nyheter/sverige/fler-brott-bedoms-som-valdtakt/|newspaper=[[Dagens Nyheter]]|access-date=14 May 2014|language=sv|date=10 June 2010}}</ref><ref name="daphne-study">{{cite book | last1 = Kelly | first1 = Liz | last2 = Lovett | first2 = Jo | last3 = Burman | first3 = Michele | author-link1 = Liz Kelly | title = Different systems, similar outcomes? Tracking attrition in reported rape cases in eleven European countries (Country briefing: Scotland) | publisher = [[London Metropolitan University#Academic departments|Child and Woman Abuse Studies Unit (CWASU), London Metropolitan University]] | location = London | date = May 2009 | url = http://www.sccjr.ac.uk/publications/different-systems-similar-outcomes-tracking-attrition-in-reported-rape-cases-in-eleven-countries/ | access-date = 1 October 2015 | archive-date = 17 September 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210917041443/https://www.sccjr.ac.uk/publications/different-systems-similar-outcomes-tracking-attrition-in-reported-rape-cases-in-eleven-countries/ | url-status = dead }} {{ISBN|9780954480394}} [http://www.sccjr.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Daphne_Scotland_Briefing-__Different_Systems,_similar_outcomes%283%29.pdf Pdf.] [http://kunskapsbanken.nck.uu.se/nckkb/nck/publik/fil/visa/197/different Final report, pdf.] Funded by the European Commission Daphne II Programme.</ref> For example, in 1965 Sweden was one of the first countries in the world to criminalise [[marital rape]],<ref name="daphne-study" /> and Sweden is one of a few countries in the world to criminalize only the purchase of sexual services, but not the selling.<ref>{{cite web|title=Lagrådsremiss - En ny sexualbrottslagstiftning|url=http://www.regeringen.se/content/1/c6/02/61/98/8d159169.pdf|publisher=[[Government of Sweden]]|access-date=17 July 2014|language=sv|year=2004|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041109020706/http://www.regeringen.se/content/1/c6/02/61/98/8d159169.pdf|archive-date=9 November 2004|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The rate of exposure to sexual offences has remained relatively unchanged, according to the SCS, since the first survey was conducted in 2006, despite an increase in the number of reported sex crimes.<ref name="NTU2014">{{cite book|title=Nationella trygghetsundersökningen 2013 - Om utsatthet, otrygghet och förtroende (Rapport 2014:1)|year=2014|publisher=[[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]]|isbn=978-91-87335-20-4|pages=35–36, 47–48|url=https://www.bra.se/download/18.35c681d4143337cb6b29e9/1395068368052/2013_1_NTU_2013.pdf|access-date=20 May 2014|language=sv}}</ref> This discrepancy can largely be explained by reforms in sex crime legislation, widening of the definition of rape,<ref>{{cite web|title=Sju perspektiv på våldtäkt|url=http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/06f9db6c#/06f9db6c/1|publisher=Nationellt centrum för kvinnofrid/[[Uppsala University]]|access-date=20 May 2014|author=Petter Asp, Professor of Criminal Law|pages=24, 59|date=May 2010}}</ref><ref name="BBC1">{{cite web|last=Ruth|first=Alexander|title=Sweden's rape rate under the spotlight|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-19592372|work=[[BBC News]]|access-date=29 April 2014|date=14 September 2012}}</ref><ref name="BRA">{{cite web|url=https://www.bra.se/bra/bra-in-english/home/news-from-bra/archive/news/2011-01-18-how-common-is-rape-in-sweden-compared-to-other-european-countries.html|title=How common is rape in Sweden compared to other European countries?|publisher=The [[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]]|access-date=14 May 2014|date=18 January 2011}}</ref> and an effort by [[Government of Sweden|the Government]] to decrease the number of [[under-reporting|unreported cases]].<ref name="BBC1" /><ref name="effort1">{{cite news|title=Nya metoder ska ge fler våldtäktsåtal|date=25 November 2008|url=https://www.dn.se/nyheter/sverige/nya-metoder-ska-ge-fler-valdtaktsatal/|newspaper=[[Dagens Nyheter]]|access-date=20 May 2014|language=sv}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Kunskapsbank - Nationellt Centrum för Kvinnofrid|url=http://www.nck.uu.se/Kunskapscentrum/Kunskapsbanken/Myndigheter/Myndighetspublikationer/?id=31|publisher=[[Uppsala University]]|access-date=14 May 2014|language=sv|quote=Insatserna från Rikspolisstyrelsen består bland annat av utbildning, informationsspridning och andra åtgärder för att förstärka Polisens förmåga upptäcka och utreda dessa brott. En annan målsättning är att allmänhetens förtroende för Polisen ska stärkas, så att fler brott anmäls.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140517122111/http://www.nck.uu.se/Kunskapscentrum/Kunskapsbanken/Myndigheter/Myndighetspublikationer/?id=31|archive-date=17 May 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=reform-effort>{{cite book|author1=Jo Lovett|author2=Liz Kelly|title=Different systems, similar outcomes?|date=2009|publisher=London Metropolitan University|isbn=978-0-9544803-9-4|pages=9, 95, 105|quote=In Sweden, reforms in 2005, which re-defined the sexual exploitation of a person in a helpless state as rape, also coincided with a marked increase in reports. [...] An expert centre for the care of battered and raped women was established, with government funding, at Uppsala University Hospital in 1995. The legal definition of rape in Sweden has been successively broadened over the last two or more decades. [...] Sweden [has] trained male and female officers in most areas}}</ref> In SCS 2013, 0.8 percent of respondents state that they were the victims of sexual offences, including rape; or an estimated 62,000 people of the general population (aged 16–79). Of these, 16 percent described the sexual offence as "rape" — which would mean approximately 36,000 incidents of rape in 2012.<ref name="NTU2014" />

According to the 2016 SCS 1.7 percent of persons stated that they had been exposed to a sexual offence. This is an increase of more than 100 percent compared to 2012 and a 70 percent compared to 2014, when 1.0 percent of persons stated exposure. Exposure to sexual offences is significantly more common among women than men, and most common in the 20–24 age bracket. Sexual offences are most common in a public place and in most cases the perpetrator is unknown to the victim.<ref name="bra2017-2"/>{{rp|5–8}}

A frequently cited source when comparing Swedish rape statistics internationally is the regularly published report by the [[United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime]] (UNODC) — although they discourage this practice.<ref name="UNODC2013">{{cite web|title=Rape at the national level, number of police-recorded offences|url=http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/statistics/crime/CTS2013_SexualViolence.xls|publisher=[[UNODC]]|access-date=10 June 2014|year=2013|quote=Please note that when using the figures, any cross-national comparisons should be conducted with caution because of the differences that exist between the legal definitions of offences in countries, or the different methods of offence counting and recording.}}</ref> In 2012, according to the report by UNODC, Sweden was quoted as having 66.5 cases of reported rapes per 100,000 population,<ref name="UNODC2013" /> based on official statistics by [[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention|Brå]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Anmälda brott, totalt och per 100 000 av medelfolkmängden, efter brottstyp och månad för anmälan, år 2012 samt jämförelse med föregående år |url=http://www.bra.se/download/18.22a7170813a0d141d21800061146/1364311914171/100La-2012.xls |publisher=[[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]] |access-date=10 June 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714125901/http://www.bra.se/download/18.22a7170813a0d141d21800061146/1364311914171/100La-2012.xls |archive-date=14 July 2014}}</ref>{{ref label|id1|Note 1|2}} The high number of reported rapes in Sweden can partly be explained by differing legal systems, offence definitions, terminological variations, recording practices and statistical conventions, making any cross-national comparison on rape statistics difficult.<ref name="statistics-caution">{{cite book|author1=Jo Lovett|author2=Liz Kelly|title=Different systems, similar outcomes?|date=2009|publisher=London Metropolitan University|isbn=978-0-9544803-9-4|page=17}}</ref>{{ref label|id1|Note 1|3}}

According to a 2014 study published by the [[Fundamental Rights Agency|European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights]] (FRA), approximately one third of all women in the EU were said to have suffered physical and/or sexual abuse. At the top end was Denmark (52%), Finland (47%) and Sweden (46%).<ref>{{cite web|title=A third of women in EU have suffered 'sexual violence'|url=http://www.france24.com/en/20140305-one-third-women-eu-victims-sexual-violence-crime-rape/|publisher=France 24 with AP & AFP|access-date=14 May 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140511221951/http://www.france24.com/en/20140305-one-third-women-eu-victims-sexual-violence-crime-rape/|archive-date=11 May 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="EU-study">{{cite web|title=Violence against women: an EU-wide survey|url=http://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra-2014-vaw-survey-main-results_en.pdf|publisher=[[European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights]]|access-date=14 May 2014|pages=28–30|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140307224554/http://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra-2014-vaw-survey-main-results_en.pdf|archive-date=7 March 2014}}</ref> Every second woman in the EU has experienced sexual harassment at least once since the age of 15. In Sweden that figure was 81 percent, closely followed by Denmark (80%) and France (75%). Included in the definition of "sexual harassment" was — among other things — inappropriate staring or leering and cyber harassment.<ref>{{cite web|author=Ann Törnkvist (ann.tornkvist@thelocal.com) |url=http://www.thelocal.se/20140305/sweden-out-top-in-eu-domestic-violence-league |title=Sweden stands out in domestic violence study - The Local |date=5 March 2014 |publisher=Thelocal.se |access-date=11 March 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Violence against women: an EU-wide survey, Sexual harassment|url=http://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra-2014-vaw-survey-main-results_en.pdf|publisher=[[European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights]]|access-date=14 May 2014|page=95|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140307224554/http://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra-2014-vaw-survey-main-results_en.pdf|archive-date=7 March 2014}}</ref> The report concluded that there's a strong correlation between higher levels of gender equality and disclosure of sexual violence.<ref name="equality">{{cite web|url=http://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra-2014-vaw-survey-main-results_en.pdf|title=Violence against women: an EU-wide survey|publisher=European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights|access-date=14 May 2014|page=28|quote=Increased gender equality leads to higher levels of disclosure about violence against women|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140307224554/http://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra-2014-vaw-survey-main-results_en.pdf|archive-date=7 March 2014}}</ref>

In its 2018 report, ''Nationella trygghetsundersökningen 2018'' (tr: "national survey of safety 2018") the [[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]] stated that there had been an increase in the self-reported number of victims of sexual crime from 4.7% in 2016 to 6.4% in 2017. In the 5 preceding years there were escalating levels compared to the 2005–2012 period where the level was relatively stable. The increase in self-reported victimization was greater among women than among men, while the number of male victims remained largely constant over the timespan (see graph). The questionnaire polls for incidents which would equate to attempted sexual assault or rape according to Swedish law.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://bra.se/statistik/statistiska-undersokningar/nationella-trygghetsundersokningen.html|title=Nationella trygghetsundersökningen 2018|date=20 November 2018|publisher=BRÅ|language=sv}}</ref>
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|caption=2013-2018 birthplace of rapists convicted in Sweden, total 843<ref name="SVT2018">{{Cite news|url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/granskning/ug/ny-kartlaggning-av-valdtaktsdomar-58-procent-av-de-domda-fodda-utomlands|title=Ny kartläggning av våldtäktsdomar: 58 procent av de dömda födda utomlands|last=Nyheter|first=SVT|date=2018-08-22|work=SVT Nyheter|access-date=2019-08-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180822190937/https://www.svt.se/nyheter/granskning/ug/ny-kartlaggning-av-valdtaktsdomar-58-procent-av-de-domda-fodda-utomlands|archive-date=22 August 2018|publisher=[[Swedish Television]]/[[Uppdrag Granskning]]|language=sv}}</ref>
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In August 2018, [[Sveriges Television|SVT]] reported that [[rape statistics]] in Sweden show that 58% of men convicted of rape and attempted rape over the past five years were [[Immigration to Sweden|immigrants]] born outside of the [[European Union]]: [[Southern Africa]]ns, [[North Africa|Northern Africans]], [[Arab]]s, [[Greater Middle East|Middle Easterns]], and [[Afghans]].<ref name="SVT2018"/><ref name="BBCN1">{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-45269764|title=Sweden rape: Most convicted attackers foreign-born, says TV|date=22 August 2018|work=[[BBC News]]|location=[[London]]|access-date=2019-08-03}}</ref> [[Sveriges Television|Swedish Television]]'s investigating journalists found that in cases where the victims didn't know the attackers, the proportion of foreign-born [[sex offender]]s was more than 80%.<ref name="BBCN1"/> The number of rapes reported to the authorities in Sweden significantly increased<ref name="BBCN2">{{cite news |date=24 May 2018 |title=Sweden approves new law recognising sex without consent as rape |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-44230786 |work=[[BBC News]] |location=London|access-date=2019-08-03}}</ref> by 10% in 2017,<ref name="SVR">{{cite news |last=Roden |first=Lee |date=18 January 2018 |title=Reported rapes in Sweden up by 10 percent |url=https://www.thelocal.se/20180118/reported-rapes-in-sweden-up-by-10-percent |work=[[Sveriges Radio]] |location=[[Stockholm]] |access-date=2019-08-03}}</ref><ref name="Bloomberg">{{cite news |last1=Billner |first1=Amanda |last2=Niklas |first2=Magnusson |date=28 March 2018 |title=Surge in Rape Cases Puts Focus on Crime Ahead of Swedish Election |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-03-27/rape-case-surge-puts-focus-on-crime-as-swedish-election-looms |work=[[Bloomberg News]] |location=Stockholm |access-date=2019-08-03}}</ref> according to latest preliminary figures from the Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention.<ref name="SVR"/><ref name="Bloomberg"/> The number of reported rape cases was 73 per 100,000 citizens in 2017, up 24% in the past decade.<ref name="Bloomberg"/> Official numbers show that the incidence of sexual offences is on the rise;<ref name="BBCN1"/><ref name="BBCN2"/><ref name="Bloomberg"/> the Government has declared that young women are facing the greatest risks and that most of the cases go unreported.<ref name="BBCN2"/>

====Robbery====
The rate of exposure to muggings has remained relatively unchanged since 2005, according to the SCS, with 0.9 per cent of respondents stating they were the victim of such a crime in 2015.<ref name="SCS2014" /> There were 99 robberies recorded by police per 100,000 population in 2015.<ref name="bra2017-2"/>{{rp|5–8}}<ref name=Kriminalstatistik2012>{{cite web|title=Kriminalstatistik 2012|language=sv|url=https://www.bra.se/download/18.6b82726313f7b234a581e31/1379673865503/2013_18_Kriminalstatistik_2012_webb.pdf|publisher=[[Brå]]|access-date=16 July 2014}}</ref>{{ref label|id1|Note 1|4}} The prevalence victimisation rates for robbery was slightly above the EU-average in 2004, and lower than countries such as Ireland, Estonia, Greece, Spain, the United Kingdom and Poland.<ref name="2005-EUICS" />

Starting in 2015, there was a rising trend in robberies where self-reported victimisation rate rose to close to around 1.5 per cent in 2019 among people aged 16–84.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-10-18|title=Start / Statistik / Statistik utifrån brottstyper / Rån|url=https://bra.se/statistik/statistik-utifran-brottstyper/ran.html#Utsatta|url-status=live|website=bra.se|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181229204636/https://www.bra.se/statistik/statistik-utifran-brottstyper/ran.html |archive-date=29 December 2018 }}</ref>

=====Adolescent victims=====
A study published in 2000 by [[Brå]] on adolescent robberies in [[Stockholm]] and [[Malmö]] found that muggings had increased in the 90s, with approximately 10 per cent of the boys and 5 per cent of the girls aged 15–17 having been the target of a mugging. Desirable objects are mainly money and cell phones, with an average value of around SEK 800. Only half of the crime was reported to the police, and foreign-born youths were overrepresented in the offenders demographic.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ungdomar som rånar ungdomar i Malmö och Stockholm|url=http://www.bra.se/download/18.cba82f7130f475a2f1800019941/1312278173315/2000_6_ungdomar_som_ranar_ungdomar.pdf|publisher=[[Brå]]|access-date=17 July 2014|language=sv}}</ref> Follow-up studies have shown the level remaining unchanged between 1995 and 2005.<ref>{{cite web|title=Nya mönster bland unga kriminella|url=http://www.bra.se/bra/nytt-fran-bra/arkiv/apropa/2009-02-01-nya-monster-bland-unga-kriminella.html|publisher=[[Brå]]|access-date=17 July 2014|language=sv|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140724044653/http://www.bra.se/bra/nytt-fran-bra/arkiv/apropa/2009-02-01-nya-monster-bland-unga-kriminella.html|archive-date=24 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==== Harassment ====
The percentage of persons exposed to harassment in 2015 was 4.7 per cent. This is an increase as compared with 2014, when 4.0 per cent stated that they had been exposed. Between 2005 and 2010, the percentage of exposed persons gradually declined from 5.2 per cent to 3.5 per cent. Thereafter, the percentage increased between 2011 and 2015 towards the same level as when the survey was commenced (when the percentage of exposed persons was 5.0%). Exposure to harassment is more common for women than men, and most common among the youngest in the survey (in the 16–19 age bracket). It is most common for the perpetrator to be unknown to the victim.<ref name="bra2017-2"/>{{rp|5–8}}

There might be a correlation between rise in harassment by an unknown perpetrator due to the general rise of harassment in various online communities, but nothing conclusive. Most harassment reported is either women harassing women or men harassing men, the smallest portion of reported cases are men harassing women.<ref>{{Cite journal|year=2014|title=Online Harassment|url=http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/10/22/online-harassment/|journal=Online Harassment|via=Pew Research Center}}</ref>

===Property offences===
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The SCS indicate that 9.2 per cent of households fell victim to some type of domestic property offence, which is a reduction since 2006 (when the percentage was 12.6). Crimes in this group includes theft, theft from a vehicle, bicycle theft or residential burglary. Around half of the domestic property offences reported in the SCS 2013 are stated as having been reported to the police, and the overwhelming majority of crime victims state that this happened only once in 2012.<ref name="SCS2013" />

Theft of personal property and pickpocketing are among the lowest in Europe, as is car theft and theft from a car.<ref name="2005-EUICS" />

====Burglary====
Sweden had the lowest prevalence victimisation rate for burglary in Europe, according to the 2005 EU ICS,<ref name="2005-EUICS" /> and the rate of exposure to residential burglary has remained relatively unchanged since 2006.<ref name="SCS2014" /> In SCS 2013, 0.9 percent of households stated that they were the victims of burglary in 2012.<ref name="SCS2014" /> Sweden had 785 cases of reported burglary per 100,000 population in 2012, which is a reduction from the previous year by 6 percent.<ref name="Kriminalstatistik2012" />{{Update inline|date=July 2017}}{{ref label|id1|Note 1|5}}
The majority of burglaries in Sweden are committed by international gangs from Eastern European countries like the Balkans, Romania, Poland, the Baltic countries, and Georgia.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hd.se/2017-01-30/kraftig-minskning-av-bostadsinbrott-ligor-skrams-bort-av-granskontrollerna|title=Kraftig minskning av bostadsinbrott – internationella ligor skräms bort av gränskontrollerna|website=Hd.se|date=30 January 2017 |access-date=16 December 2017}}</ref> The total number of burglaries in southern Sweden were 5871 in 2015 and 4802, the reduction was attributed to [[Denmark–Sweden border#History|border checks introduced in November 2015]] due to the ongoing [[European migrant crisis]] and police having manage to catch a number of gangs in 2016. The third reason for the reduction was [[Neighborhood watch|community cooperation]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.sydsvenskan.se/2017-01-30/kraftig-minskning-av-bostadsinbrott-ligor-skrams-bort-av-granskontrollerna|title=Kraftig minskning av bostadsinbrott – internationella ligor skräms bort av gränskontrollerna|work=Sydsvenskan|access-date=22 July 2017|language=sv-SE}}</ref>

===== Burglary perpetrators =====
Since [[Police in Sweden]] have a low conviction rate for burglaries, there is also corresponding ignorance about who the burglars are.<ref name="neo_1_2014">{{cite news|url=http://magasinetneo.se/artiklar/darfor-kommer-inbrotten-med-hostmorkret/|title=(sv) Därför kommer inbrotten med höstmörkret|date=2014|publisher=Magasinet Neo|issue=1–2014|access-date=4 February 2017}}</ref>

The [[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]] received responsibility for compiling statistics in 1994, at which time the two main categories of offenders were youth and drug addicts.{{citation needed|date=July 2017}} This pattern changed into one where the main category of offenders were organised gangs, some of which were composed of foreigners travelling to Sweden in order to commit crime and then return to their home countries again.{{citation needed|date=July 2017}} In the [[Stockholm]] area police estimated in 2014 that a third of all burglaries were done by foreign nationals.<ref name="neo_1_2014" /> In 2015 police were reported as estimating that foreign gangs comprising 1500 individuals were organized with some members living Sweden to coordinate thefts: a third of these gangs are from [[Lithuania]], a fifth from [[Poland]] and the rest from [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], [[Belarus]], [[Romania]] and [[Bulgaria]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/over-halften-av-alla-bostadsinbrott-och-bilstolder-sker-av-internationella-ligor|title=1.500 personer ur utländska inbrottsligor kartlagda av svensk polis|last=Nyheter|first=SVT|work=SVT Nyheter|access-date=22 July 2017|language=sv}}</ref> In 2017 police were reported as estimating that about half of the annual 20,000 burglaries, including failed attempts, were committed by gangs from the [[Balkans]], [[Romania]], the [[Baltic states]] and [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]].<ref name="sydsv30januari2017">{{cite news|url=http://www.sydsvenskan.se/2017-01-30/kraftig-minskning-av-bostadsinbrott-ligor-skrams-bort-av-granskontrollerna|title=Kraftig minskning av bostadsinbrott – internationella ligor skräms bort av gränskontrollerna|date=30 January 2017|work=Sydsvenskan|publisher=Sydsvenskan|language=sv-SE|access-date=4 February 2017}}</ref>

===Fear of violence===
According to a survey by the
[[Swedish Agency for Youth and Civil Society]] (MUCF), performed in 2018, and released in April 2019, 70% of men and 36% of women in the ages 16–29 years old were afraid of being subjected to violence when they are outside. In 2013 the percentages were 26% for men and 32% for women.<ref name="MUCF2018">{{Cite web|url=https://www.mucf.se/publikationer/unga-med-attityd-2019-del-1|title=Unga med attityd 2019, del 1|date=7 May 2019|website=mucf.se [[Swedish Agency for Youth and Civil Society]]}}</ref><ref name="MUCF2013">{{Cite web|url=https://www.mucf.se/publikationer/unga-med-attityd-2013|title=Unga med attityd 2013|date=5 Nov 2013|website=mucf.se [[Swedish Agency for Youth and Civil Society]]}}</ref><ref name="MUCF2018SVT">{{Cite news|url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/ny-studie-killar-dubbelt-sa-oroliga-for-vald-ute-jamfort-med-tjejer|title=Ny studie: Killar dubbelt så oroliga för våld utomhus jämfört med tjejer|date=11 May 2019|newspaper=SVT Nyheter|last1=Stefansson|first1=Klara}}</ref>

According to the 2017 EU-SILC survey, Sweden was one of the countries in Europe where the highest share of the population experience problems with crime, violence or vandalism in the area they live.<ref name="scb_eu_silc_analysis">{{Cite web|url=http://www.scb.se/hitta-statistik/artiklar/2019/fler-upplever-brottslighet-och-vandalisering-i-sitt-bostadsomrade/|title=Fler upplever brottslighet och vandalisering i sitt bostadsområde|website=Statistiska Centralbyrån|language=sv|access-date=2019-04-28}}</ref>

==Criminal sanctions==
[[File:Häktet Sollentuna.jpg|thumb|A Swedish [[Pre-trial detention|remand prison]] in [[Sollentuna Municipality|Sollentuna]], Stockholm]]
Sanctions under the Swedish Penal Code consist of [[Fine (penalty)|fines]] and [[damages]], [[imprisonment]], conditional sentences, [[probation]], being placed in special care and [[community service]]. Various sanctions can be combined. A basic premise in the Penal Code is that non-custodial penalties are more desirable than custodial, and the court has considerable latitude when choosing a criminal sanctions, paying special attention to measures chiefly aimed at rehabilitating offenders.<ref>{{cite web|title=Criminal sanctions|url=http://www.hogstadomstolen.se/Funktioner/English/Legal-proceedings/Criminal-sanctions/|publisher=[[Supreme Court of Sweden]]|access-date=18 July 2014}}</ref><ref name="sanction-system">{{cite web|title=The Swedish system of Sanctions|url=https://www.kriminalvarden.se/upload/Informationsmaterial/Sanctionssyst.pdf|publisher=[[Swedish Prison and Probation Service]]|access-date=18 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140312021822/http://www.kriminalvarden.se/upload/Informationsmaterial/Sanctionssyst.pdf|archive-date=12 March 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Fines and damages===
A person who has committed a crime may be ordered to pay damages to the victim. Such damages can relate to compensation for destroyed clothing, a broken tooth, costs for medical care, pain and suffering, or personal violation.<ref>{{cite web|title=Damages|url=http://www.hogstadomstolen.se/Funktioner/English/Legal-proceedings/Criminal-sanctions/Damages/|publisher=[[Supreme Court of Sweden]]|access-date=18 July 2014}}</ref> A person sentenced for an offence that could lead to imprisonment must pay SEK 800 to the [[Crime Victim Compensation and Support Authority|Crime Victim Fund]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Payment to the Crime Victim Fund|url=http://www.hogstadomstolen.se/Funktioner/English/Legal-proceedings/Criminal-sanctions/Crime-Victim-Fund-/|publisher=[[Supreme Court of Sweden]]|access-date=18 July 2014}}</ref> Fines are determined in money, or as [[Day-fine|day fines]]. In the case of day fines, two figures are given, for example "40 day fines of SEK 50" (i.e. SEK 2,000). The first figure shows how serious the court has considered the offence and the latter figure depends on the financial situation of the accused.<ref name="sanction-system" /><ref>{{cite web|title=Fines|url=http://www.hogstadomstolen.se/Funktioner/English/Legal-proceedings/Criminal-sanctions/Fines/|publisher=[[Supreme Court of Sweden]]|access-date=18 July 2014}}</ref>

===Conditional sentences, probation and community service===
Conditional sentences are primarily intended when a person commits a one-off crime and there is no reason to fear that he or she will re-offend. Probation can be applied to crimes for which fines are considered insufficient. Like a conditional sentence, it is non-custodial, but it is relatively intrusive.<ref name="sanction-system" />

If a conditional sentence is imposed there will be a probationary period of two years. During this period, the person must conduct himself in an acceptable manner. The conditional sentence may be combined with day fines and/or an obligation to perform community service. There is no check made as to whether the person sentenced has conducted himself in an acceptable manner; but if the person is found to conduct himself in an unacceptable manner, the court may issue a warning, change a provision, or decide that the conditional sentence should be replaced by another sanction.<ref>{{cite web|title=Conditional sentence|url=http://www.hogstadomstolen.se/Funktioner/English/Legal-proceedings/Criminal-sanctions/Conditional-sentence/|publisher=[[Supreme Court of Sweden]]|access-date=18 July 2014}}</ref>

A person who has been sentenced to probation is subject to a probationary period of three years. During this period, the person must conduct himself in an acceptable manner. A [[probation officer]] is appointed, who will assist and support the person sentenced. The court may specify rules about medical care, work and housing during the probationary period. The probation may be combined with day fines, imprisonment, an obligation to undergo care according to a predetermined treatment plan and/or to perform community service.<ref>{{cite web|title=Probation|url=http://www.hogstadomstolen.se/Funktioner/English/Legal-proceedings/Criminal-sanctions/Probation/|publisher=[[Supreme Court of Sweden]]|access-date=18 July 2014}}</ref>

Community service is an obligation to perform certain unpaid work during a particular time. A person sentenced to community service serves his sentence through working, for example, for an association or a not-for-profit organisation.<ref>{{cite web|title=Community service and juvenile community service|url=http://www.hogstadomstolen.se/Funktioner/English/Legal-proceedings/Criminal-sanctions/Community-service-and-juvenile-community-service/|publisher=[[Supreme Court of Sweden]]|access-date=18 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140724223451/http://www.hogstadomstolen.se/Funktioner/English/Legal-proceedings/Criminal-sanctions/Community-service-and-juvenile-community-service/|archive-date=24 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Prison and electronic monitoring===
A person who has been sentenced to at most six months imprisonment has the opportunity to serve the sentence in the form of intensive supervision with [[Ankle monitor|electronic monitoring]]. The person sentenced will serve the penalty at home and may only leave home at certain times, for example, to go to work. Compliance with these times is checked electronically.<ref>{{cite web|title=Intensive supervision with electronic monitoring (foot tag)|url=http://www.hogstadomstolen.se/Funktioner/English/Legal-proceedings/Criminal-sanctions/Foot-tag/|publisher=[[Supreme Court of Sweden]]|access-date=18 July 2014}}</ref>

A person who has been sentenced to prison will receive an order from the [[Swedish Prison and Probation Service]] to attend an institution. It is possible to start serving the penalty immediately after the judgement has been made, and in certain cases, the person sentenced can get a postponement up to one year. A sentence of imprisonment can, in certain cases, be enforced by the Prison and Probation Service with the use of an ankle monitor outside the institution.<ref>{{cite web|title=Prison|url=http://www.hogstadomstolen.se/Funktioner/English/Legal-proceedings/Criminal-sanctions/Prison/|publisher=[[Supreme Court of Sweden]]|access-date=18 July 2014}}</ref>

Prison sentences may not be less than 14 days and may not exceed ten years (18 years for some offences) or life imprisonment. A person sentenced to life imprisonment can apply for a determined sentence at the Örebro Lower Court. A prisoner has to serve at least 10 years in prison before applying and the set sentence cannot be under 18 years. However, some prisoners may never be released, being considered too dangerous.<ref name="sanction-system" />

===Young offenders===
According to the Penal Code, persons under 15 who have committed a crime cannot be sentenced to any sanction. If the under age offender is in need of corrective measures due to the crime, it is the responsibility of the [[National Board of Health and Welfare (Sweden)|National Board of Health and Welfare]] to rectify the situation, either by ordering that he be put into care in a family home or a home with special supervision.<ref name="sanction-system" />

As a rule, offenders between 15 and 17 are subject to sanctions under the Act on Special Rules for the Care of the Young ([http://www.riksdagen.se/sv/Dokument-Lagar/Lagar/Svenskforfattningssamling/Lag-1980621med-sarskilda-b_sfs-1980-621/?bet=1980:621 SFS 1980:621]) instead of normal criminal sanctions. An offender aged 15 and 17 years old, who have committed serious or repeated crimes, and is sentenced to prison or closed juvenile care usually serves time in a special youth home run by the [[Swedish National Board of Institutional Care|National Board of Institutional Care]]. A person under 18 years is only sentenced to prison during exceptional circumstances. In less serious cases, fines are levied.<ref name="sanction-system" />

For offenders between 18 and 19 years of age, measures in accordance with the Act on Special Rules for the Care may only be used to a limited extent. A person over 18 but under 21 can be sentenced to prison only if there are special reasons for this, with regard to the crime, or for other special reasons. A person who is under 21 when a crime was committed may receive milder sentencing than that normally stipulated, and may never be sentenced to life imprisonment if the crime was committed before Jan 2 2022.<ref name="sanction-system" />

There are no age limits for the application of conditional sentences.<ref name="sanction-system" />

==Incarceration rate==
In 2022, Sweden had an incarceration rate of 96 persons per 100,000 inhabitants,<ref>{{cite web|title=Sweden - World Prison Brief|url=http://www.prisonstudies.org/country/sweden|publisher=[[International Centre for Prison Studies]]|access-date=8 January 2025}}</ref> lower than the European Union average of 108 prisoners per 100,000 inhabitants.<ref>{{cite web|title=Crime trends in detail|url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Prison_statistics|publisher=[[Eurostat]]|access-date=8 January 2025}}</ref> This is a significant increase from 2013's of 66 persons per 100,000 inhabitants,<ref>{{cite web|title=Sweden - World Prison Brief|url=http://www.prisonstudies.org/country/sweden|publisher=[[International Centre for Prison Studies]]|access-date=17 July 2014}}</ref> which was significantly lower than most other countries at the time.{{ref label|id3|Note 3|1}} The EU average incarceration rate in the period 2008–2010 was 126 persons per 100,000.<ref>{{cite web|title=USA - World Prison Brief|url=http://www.prisonstudies.org/country/united-states-america|publisher=[[International Centre for Prison Studies]]|access-date=17 July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Crime trends in detail|url=http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/statistics_explained/index.php/Crime_trends_in_detail#A_steadily_increasing_prison_population|publisher=[[Eurostat]]|access-date=17 July 2014}}</ref>

In 2012, approximately 12,000 prison terms were handed down—a level comparable to the one in the mid-1970s. The number of people sentenced to prison went down in the nine-year period of 2004–2013, but the average sentence length (approximately 8.4 months) has not been affected.<ref>{{cite web|title=Allt färre döms till fängelse|url=http://www.bra.se/bra/nytt-fran-bra/arkiv/press/2013-05-30-allt-farre-doms-till-fangelse.html|publisher=[[Brå]]|language=sv|access-date=18 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140724084814/http://www.bra.se/bra/nytt-fran-bra/arkiv/press/2013-05-30-allt-farre-doms-till-fangelse.html|archive-date=24 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Lagföring och kriminalvård – slutlig statistik 2013|url=http://www.bra.se/bra/nytt-fran-bra/arkiv/press/2014-05-28-lagforing-och-kriminalvard---slutlig-statistik-2013.html|publisher=[[Brå]]|access-date=18 July 2014|language=sv|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140724052110/http://www.bra.se/bra/nytt-fran-bra/arkiv/press/2014-05-28-lagforing-och-kriminalvard---slutlig-statistik-2013.html|archive-date=24 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Due to an increase in incarceration rates, in 2025 [https://www.straitstimes.com/world/europe/sweden-eyes-sending-inmates-abroad-as-prisons-full-due-to-gang-crime-wave Sweden announced a planned increase in prison capacity from 9,000 spaces to 27,000 spaces by 2033] and that it would consider sending incarcerated individuals to serve their sentences abroad.<ref>{{Cite web |last=AFP |date=2025-01-29 |title=Sweden plans to rent prison cells abroad as inmates soar |url=https://gulfnews.com/world/europe/sweden-plans-to-rent-prison-cells-abroad-as-inmates-soar-1.500025291 |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=Gulf News: Latest UAE news, Dubai news, Business, travel news, Dubai Gold rate, prayer time, cinema |language=en}}</ref>

== Image in media ==
There has been debate in the media about the crime rate in Sweden, and further debate about how crime has been affected by the accumulated immigration and refugee influx. Some international media have claimed that the refugee immigrants in Sweden created dangerous neighborhoods that are now "[[No-go area|no-go zones]]" for Swedish police.<ref name=vice-no-go-zones>{{ Cite web|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/people-of-the-no-go-zones-talk-about-what-its-like-to-live-in-no-go-zones-726/|title=People in Sweden's Alleged "No-Go Zones" Talk About What it's Like to Live There|newspaper=Vice|date=16 November 2016}}</ref> Several pieces by [[Norsk rikskringkasting]], the state-run media channel in the neighboring country [[Norway]] have described the "no-go zones" as areas in which ambulances, the fire brigade and police are routinely attacked, with reporter [[Anders Magnus]] in 2016 threatened and hurled rocks at by masked men when he tried to make interviews in [[Husby, Stockholm|Husby]].<ref name="nrk.no">{{cite web|url=https://www.nrk.no/urix/svensk-politi_-_-vi-er-i-ferd-med-a-miste-kontrollen-1.12920404|title=Svensk politi: – Vi er i ferd med å miste kontrollen|website=Nrk.no|date=8 May 2016|access-date=16 December 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nrk.no/kultur/nrk-team-truet-og-kastet-stein-etter-i-sverige-1.12934238|title=NRK-team truet og kastet stein etter i Sverige|website=Nrk.no|date=6 May 2016|access-date=16 December 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://journalisten.no/2016/05/kastet-stein-pa-anders-magnus-og-nrk-kollega-i-rinkeby|title=Kastet stein på Anders Magnus og NRK-kollega i Rinkeby|website=Journalisten.no|date=6 May 2016|access-date=16 December 2017}}</ref> Norwegian minister of immigration and integration [[Sylvi Listhaug]] and opposition politician [[Bård Vegard Solhjell]] said that they were "shocked" by the emergence of no-go zones in Sweden.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nrk.no/norge/listhaug_-_-sjokkert-over-tilstandene-i-sverige-1.12937020|title=Listhaug: – Sjokkert over tilstandene i Sverige|website=Nrk.no|date=9 May 2016|access-date=16 December 2017}}</ref>

Another incidence of foreign journalists attacked in a Stockholm suburb includes the Australian team of [[Liz Hayes]] from CBS's ''60 minutes'' in [[Rinkeby]] in 2016, working with anti-immigration activist Jan Sjunnesson,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.resume.se/nyheter/artiklar/2016/03/22/har-sprider-jan-sjunnesson-en-falsk-story-i-australiensk-tv/|title=Här sprider Jan Sjunnesson en falsk story i australiensisk tv|website=Resume.se|access-date=16 December 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://expo.se/2015/chefredaktor-pa-sd-agd-tidning-sprider-grov-rasism_6789.html|title=Chefredaktör på SD-ägd tidning sprider grov rasism|website=Expo.se|access-date=16 December 2017}}</ref> in which a member of the crew was allegedly dragged into a building during filming and punched and kicked by several people.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mediaite.com/tv/video-released-of-60-minutes-film-crew-being-attacked-in-sweden-by-migrants/|title=Video Released of 60 Minutes Film Crew Being Attacked in Sweden by Migrants|website=Mediaite.com|access-date=16 December 2017}}</ref> In 2017, independent investigative journalist [[Tim Pool]] was escorted out of Rinkeby by police, "as many men were getting agitated by our presence".{{citation needed|date=May 2017}} However, Swedish police authorities claimed that Pool was not formally escorted out of the area, as no police report on the incident was filed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thelocal.se/20170301/police-told-me-to-leave-rinkeby-us-journalist-tim-pool|title=Police dispute US journalist's claim he was escorted out of Rinkeby|date=1 March 2017|website=Thelocal.se|access-date=16 December 2017}}</ref> After his visit to Sweden, Pool concluded that Sweden "has real problems".{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}

[[Kurds in Sweden|Swedish-Kurdish]] economist [[Tino Sanandaji]] said that, due to fear of being perceived as racists, it has been [[taboo]] in Sweden to describe the situation in [[Vulnerable area|vulnerables areas]] due to their having a high fraction of immigrants.<ref name="nrk.no"/>

In February 2017, [[UKIP]] British politician [[Nigel Farage]] defined the Swedish city of [[Malmö]] as the "[[rape]] capital of [[Europe]]",<ref name="BBC2017">{{cite news |date=24 February 2017 |title=Reality Check: Is Malmo the 'rape capital' of Europe? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-39056786 |work=[[BBC News]] |location=[[London]]}}</ref> and linked a [[Rape in Sweden|high number of rapes in Sweden]] to the [[Immigration to Sweden|immigrants]] and [[Political asylum|asylum seekers]] from [[Africa]] and the [[Middle East]];<ref name="BBC2017"/> he was subsequently criticized by the [[BBC]] because, at the time, there were no data available on the ethnicity of the attackers.<ref name="BBC2017"/>

In November 2020, Swedish crime trends were used as an example not to follow by the [[Finns Party]] who claimed both Sweden and Finland's problem with youth crime were the result of failed immigration policies. Interior minister [[Maria Ohisalo]] instead maintained that the problems were due to "inequality".<ref>{{cite news|last=Radio|first=Sveriges|title=Svensk brottslighet används som skräckexempel i Finland - Nyheter (Ekot)|url=https://sverigesradio.se/artikel/7602575|access-date=2020-11-21|newspaper=Sveriges Radio|date=18 November 2020 |language=sv}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Vulnerable area]]
*[[Crime Victim Compensation and Support Authority]]
*[[Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention]]
*[[National Centre for Knowledge on Men's Violence against Women]]
*[[Sweden-bashing]]
*[[Historical murders and executions in Stockholm]]
*[[Swedish Prison and Probation Service]]

==Notes==
# {{note label|id1|Note 1|1}} {{note label|id1|Note 1|2}} {{note label|id1|Note 1|3}} {{note label|id1|Note 1|4}} {{note label|id1|Note 1|5}} See section on [[#International comparison|International comparison]]
# {{note label|id2|Note 2|1}} [[List of countries by intentional homicide rate]] and [[List of countries by intentional homicide rate]]
# {{note label|id3|Note 3|1}} [[List of countries by incarceration rate]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.bra.se/bra/bra-in-english/home.html The Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention official site] (In English, also available in a number of other languages.)
* [https://www.thelocal.se/20200116/how-did-reported-crime-rates-change-in-sweden-in-2019 ''The Local'': How did reported crime rates change? (2019)]

{{Sweden topics}}
{{Crime in Europe}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crime In Sweden}}
[[Category:Crime in Sweden| ]]