During the period from November 1 last year to November 1 this year, 107 reports of corruption offenses were received by the National Anti-Corruption Group (Nkg) at Noa. Numerically, it is nothing that stands out compared to the previous period. But the Police still want to raise a warning finger.
It's difficult to draw conclusions solely based on the numbers, says Natali Engstam Phalén, crime prevention specialist at Nkg.
We know, above all, that the use of intermediaries is increasing, she continues.
Intermediaries are, in this context, a mediator between one who bribes and the one who is bribed. The Police specifically mention vehicle inspections and mortgages as two areas where intermediaries operate.
The report highlights that even though the number of cases per year is relatively few, the dark figure is likely to be large. According to Engstam Phalén, there are also links to gang crime.
Organized crime needs people on the inside to enable the criminal economy, where we can see through encrypted messages that bribes are used to a large extent. Which is not visible in the statistics.
At the beginning of the year, Sweden ranked sixth out of 180 in the organization Transparency International's assessment of perceived corruption in the world's countries.
