Denmark is set to tighten its border controls with Sweden after a recent surge in shootings in Copenhagen involving Swedish teenagers. The move comes in response to growing

concerns about the involvement of young Swedes, reportedly hired by Danish gangs, in violent crimes.

Denmark’s Justice Minister, Peter Hummelgaard, announced on Friday that police would increase inspections on trains crossing the famous Øresund Bridge, which connects the Danish capital with Malmö in southern Sweden. Additional resources will also be allocated to monitor car traffic on the bridge.

"We are enhancing surveillance not only to boost security but also to prevent the influx of Swedish ‘child soldiers’ hired by gangs to carry out criminal activities in Copenhagen," Hummelgaard said.

Since April, there have been 25 incidents where Danish gangs have allegedly hired young Swedes, referred to as "child soldiers," to commit crimes in Denmark. In just the past two weeks, Danish police have linked three shootings to Swedish teenagers.

Sweden has seen a troubling rise in gang violence over the past decade, shifting from being one of Europe’s safest countries in terms of gun violence to one of the most affected. Swedish criminal gangs, often led by second-generation immigrants living abroad, are known to exploit minors to commit murders, as these young offenders typically face lighter sentences. Swedish authorities have warned that the infiltration of drug gangs into various sectors, including welfare, legal, and political systems, could take decades to combat effectively.

Hummelgaard described it as a "scary phenomenon" that Danish gangs were enlisting young Swedes to perform their "dirty work."

"There are masterminds in non-western countries—such as Lebanon, Dubai, and Iraq—who are orchestrating these conflicts in Copenhagen. We simply won’t tolerate this," the Danish minister emphasized.

Denmark has adopted a tougher stance on immigration and criminal gangs compared to Sweden, prompting some right-wing politicians in Stockholm, including those in government, to consider adopting similar measures. Denmark’s strategies have included forcibly relocating non-Danes from areas where they are in the majority and doubling penalties for certain crimes.

On Friday, Denmark’s justice ministry announced it would deepen its intelligence collaboration with Sweden by permanently stationing an officer with Stockholm police and intensifying exchanges with law enforcement agencies in southern Sweden. The ministry is also exploring the use of facial recognition technology for investigating serious crimes, such as attempted murder.

"We are now tightening the screws even further, particularly in the short term, by bolstering efforts at the border with Sweden," Hummelgaard concluded. Photo by Marcus Bengtsson, Wikimedia commons.