Stockholm Economy Hampered by Mafia

On May 4, 2007 a report was released that concluded that organized crime is "putting the brakes on growth in the Stockholm region." A top notch ferry and flight connections and made the region a popular transit area for some criminal networks that are preparing to branch out into other European regions.
The report was headed by Marie Eriksson, who manages a gender equality project at Stockholm's county administrative board. Its findings are the result of a collaborative effort between police in Stockholm and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency's Baltic unit.
According to the report, the organized crime networks of today have little in common with the mafia image most people are familiar with. Today's organized criminal networks more closely resemble multinational companies with their goods, services, divisions and employees. And one of the most lucrative divisions focuses on human trafficking.
The report refers to 51 attempts in the last three years to break up human trafficking operations involving prostitution in the Stockholm region. These raids showed that groups involved in human trafficking often also have connections to the weapons and drugs trades.
Marie Eriksson has proposed a number of preventive measures designed to ward battle all forms of organized crime. More financial resources should be made available, and local and regional groups involved in tackling the problem should work closer together.