Sweden’s child prisons could hold convicted offenders as young as 13 under a proposed law aimed at tackling youth involvement in gang crime across the Nordic country.
The Swedish government has proposed lowering the age of criminal responsibility from 15 to 13. The Swedish legislature is expected to vote on the proposal on June 15, 2026.
Officials said the plan follows a rise in crimes involving minors, including gang-linked shootings, bombings, fraud, robbery and drug dealing over the past decade. Reuters reported that gangs have used social media to recruit teenagers, sometimes as young as 11, for criminal activity.
Sweden is rebuilding prisons to house violent teenage offenders as the government seeks to lower the criminal age to 13, citing a surge in gang-related shootings and bombings involving minors https://t.co/6oYoljzXhM pic.twitter.com/CMuZFGzj15
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 2, 2026Swedish police estimate that the country has more than 17,500 active gang members and about 50,000 associates. Gang-related crime costs Sweden about $20 billion a year.
The proposed facilities would keep boys and girls in separate cells. Convicted children would receive schooling and access to gym facilities, video games and television until 8 p.m. before returning to their cells. The measure would be reviewed after five years if adopted by lawmakers.
Read: Unraveling the Profile of Sweden’s Shooter Who Killed 11
