Switzerland won’t be spared drug violence: criminal police head

"The criminal groups are organised on an international scale," said Callandret. "Their aim is to make money, to establish themselves in the marketplace." Keystone-SDA

It is only a matter of time before Switzerland, like other countries in Europe, experiences an escalation in drug-related violence, says the head of the Federal Criminal Police. Drug-related shootings have already taken place in Switzerland, he points out.

“Countries with a reputation for calm, such as Belgium, the Netherlands and Sweden, are now being hit by shootings and settling of scores, including with explosives […] There is no reason to think that Switzerland will be spared. It will happen sooner or later,” said Yanis Callandret in an interview published on Saturday by Tamedia newspapers.

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This increase in violence is being caused in part by the wave of cocaine that is sweeping across Europe, he explained. “The criminal groups are organised on an international scale,” he said. “Their aim is to make money, to establish themselves in the marketplace.”

But these groups are also active in human trafficking, prostitution and swindling, said Callandret: “They are everywhere where there is money to be made.”

Cocaine everywhere

These criminal organisations, made up in particular of Italian, Serbian and Albanian mafias, “work together” and divide up the roles, explained the police chief. “It’s at the level of regional and local dealers that tensions arise. They defend a territory or a market, which leads to violence.”

Cocaine consumption in Switzerland has doubled in ten years, added the head of the Federal Criminal Police. “It’s not just urban centres that are affected, but also more rural communities”. From CHF1,000 ($1,221) a gram 20 years ago to CHF30 a gram today in France, this drug “has democratised consumption and use” and affects all walks of life, he said.

As for fentanyl, which is 20 to 40 times more potent than heroin and is wreaking havoc in the United States, there is very little of it in Europe and Switzerland at the moment, said Callandret. “We are keeping a very close eye on what is happening in North America”, because “this type of product will one day reach the Swiss market.”

Translated from French with DeepL/gw

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