A 16-year-old boy has been shot dead in Sweden. He was found lifeless on a bike path in the small town of Sandviken late Tuesday evening and was pronounced dead in hospital overnight, police said on Wednesday morning. A murder investigation has been launched and no one has been arrested. Sandviken is about 160 kilometers northwest of Stockholm.

Sweden has long had a problem with criminal gangs and in particular with gun crime. In 2022, more people were shot dead in the Scandinavian EU country than ever before in a year - the 16-year-old is at least the 54th fatality since the beginning of the year.

New Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has promised to give top priority to fighting serious crime and gangs. There will be new money and new laws for this, he announced on Wednesday morning in Parliament in Stockholm. Prevention should go hand in hand with fighting crime.