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From: TT
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Photo: Maja Suslin / TT
The case is before the Södertörn District Court, but the main hearing will take place in the security room of the Stockholm District Court. Stock Photography.
“No comment”.
It was the recurring response of two children who prosecutors believe were exposed to human trafficking when they were used to sell drugs to a criminal network.
They do not see themselves as victims of crime.
According to prosecutors, a 27-year-old man who was identified as the leader of a criminal ring in the district of Vårberg, south of Stockholm, recruited the children, who were then under 18 years old, to sell drugs. It put them in a situation that spelled an emergency for them, meaning it should be branded as human trafficking, prosecutors reason.
– The emergency has been that the plaintiffs find themselves in a criminal, violent and socially destructive environment, which runs the risk of seriously damaging their health and development, said prosecutor Lars Ågren during Thursday’s hearing in district court.
But neither the 27-year-old defendant nor any of the plaintiffs, who have now turned 18, admit that anything criminal has happened.
– I don’t know any of them, said one plaintiff in response to the prosecutor’s question if he knows who the defendants are in the main drug case.
Big drug case
In addition to the human trafficking charge, the 27-year-old and eleven other people are charged with a felony drug offense. According to the investigation, they have been part of the network that is suspected of controlling drug trafficking in Vårberg.
The other plaintiff also doesn’t know any of the defendants, he said in district court.
Faced with a series of recorded telephone conversations in which prosecutors said they overheard the 27-year-old and the plaintiffs discussing drug sales, both claimed that the prosecutors were wrong. We are not the ones to be heard in the conversations, they said, and even denied that the phones can even be connected to them.
Prosecutors have also previously shown films in which one of the plaintiffs is seen handling drugs.
– It’s not me, he said.
Denies the crime
The questioning of the 27-year-old defendant ended quickly. He denied that he was the one who was heard in the conversations and would not say whether he knew the plaintiffs.
– Never in his life did he answer the question of whether he persuaded them to sell drugs.
The prosecution had also called Brå investigator Daniel Vesterhav as an expert witness in criminal networks. He said recruiting there is often done in a sliding process, usually starting with boys reaching out to young men in the network to offer their services.
– Criminal gangs occupy an important place in the public environment in socially vulnerable areas, which is why it becomes part of everyday life. Therefore, the step towards the environment is not described as great, Vesterhav said.
– In the beginning, it is often voluntary, but when you are absorbed more and more, it becomes more conditional. Everything is fine if you follow the rules, but you are aware that if you do not, you can have quite serious consequences.
Hard to put down
It is difficult to get out of a criminal network, the North Sea emphasized, especially for young children who are exploited. If you are going to do this, outside help is almost always required. And telling the police about your activities in such a way that it may affect others on the network can have serious consequences.
What could it be? asked prosecutor Paulina Brandberg.
– It can be a rude use of force, even shootings, fatal shootings.
The main hearing in the Stockholm District Court security room will continue for several weeks and is expected to end just before Christmas.
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