Swedish police arrested the teenager after a fatal triple shooting in Uppsala city on Tuesday.
The shooter reportedly escaped on a scooter after an attack at a hair salon in the center of town, causing a manhunt.
Police confirmed Wednesday that the person arrested in the shooting was under the age of 18.
All three victims were between the ages of 15 and 20, Swedish police told a press conference, but local police chief Eric Ulund said their identity was not “100% confirmed.”
Police are investigating the possibility that death may be linked to gang crimes, Swedish media reported.
Local media said one of the people killed at the hair salon was reportedly known to police.
The victim was involved in a police investigation into a planned attack on gang leader Ismail Abd’s relatives, according to the report. The person was never charged.
Called “Jordgubben” or “The Strawberry”, Abd is a well-known gang leader.
A new violent chapter in the Swedish gang war began in 2023 when Abd’s mother was murdered at his home in Uppsala, north of Stockholm.
Sweden has seen a wave of teenage gang crimes in recent years, with suspects being charged with a range of crimes ranging from vandalism to murder.
To tackle the issue, the Swedish government has proposed a new law that will allow police to eavesdrop on children under the age of 15.
At a pre-planned press conference on gang violence on Wednesday, Justice Minister Gunnar Stromer suggested that police do not need concrete evidence to carry out the wiretapping.
He acknowledges the proposal involves a major violation of privacy, but Stromer suggests that measures are needed to stop the recruitment of 10 and 11 children for the gang, Swedish media reported.
The government also says it wants to strengthen the country’s gun laws.
The attack came on the eve of the Walpurgis Spring Festival, where a large crowd was expected to descend on the streets of Uppsala, a university town in northern Stockholm.
College students known in Sweden as Valborg gather in town for a champagne breakfast, herring lunch and raft race on the river.
There is a large bonfire on the outskirts of the city, planned on Wednesday evening.
Osa Larson, local police chief for Uppsala and Knivsta, said the Swedes are planning to visit Uppsala for the annual Valborg Spring Festival event, the annual Valborg Spring Festival event, popular with students.
However, visitors were urged to contact police if they found something they were worried about.
She said that there will be a large police presence throughout Uppsala in the coming days, but there is no “guarantee” to avoid further violence.
After the shooting, officers blocked the area from a large area near the hair salon.
“It all happened very quickly. It just turned into a van, a van, a van,” an eyewitness told Swedish channel TV4.
Another man said he was cooking at home when he heard “two bangs that sounded like fireworks” going out on the street.
He told Swedish television that he was “very surprised and scary,” and soon “a pack of police and ambulances” was cut off from the streets and told people to return.
