With associate professor Teresa Silva, department of social sciences, Midsweden university.
Illegal drug markets are a seedbed for violent crime in almost every country. Being one of the most profitable markets, controlling the drug supply is the origin of disputes between organized criminal groups who seek to dominate equally in big cities, small towns, and rural areas.
In Sundsvall, recent events in the winter of 2023 indicated that the municipality was not immune to the phenomenon. Although an evaluation of the street-based drug scene done in 2017 (Navet project) suggested that in Sundsvall, the illegal drugs being exchanged were mainly supplied by residents with few connections with organized groups, this seems to have changed in the most recent years.
How will the situation evolve? What are the risks for the community? How can authorities and the public administration prevent drug-related violent crime from happening? During the seminar, we propose to discuss these and other questions the public may bring to the debate.
