Safe environment and the emergence of gangs

In recent years, the street gang phenomenon has emerged in police bulletins, according to which Finland has roughly ten groups that can be classified as street gangs. The discussion around the news coverage has confused the concepts and even denied the existence of street gangs. The confusion related to the concepts has also been impacted by the discussion around youth violence and robberies that have been shoehorned in as elements of the phenomenon. As such, establishing official definitions is important to ensure that the matters are addressed correctly and in the right contexts. The police are currently making relevant preparations. 

Despite the initial lack of a mutual understanding, the news coverage around the issue continued, causing uncertainty and feelings of unsafety among local residents and young people in particular. That said, everyone agreed that the operating environment had gone through a clear change that required measures and cooperation between authorities. 

Street gang, youth gang and juvenile delinquency – what is this all about? 

According to the police, there are groups in Finland engaged in criminal activities that resemble those of street gangs. One of these groups operates in Vantaa. The members of the street gang groups identified in Finland are prominently men between 20 and 30 years of age, which means that the term ‘youth gang,’ which is sometimes used in these contexts, is not quite accurate. It should also be noted that robberies in Vantaa have also increased significantly in recent times. The cases that have come to light have mostly occurred around transport stations and involved native Finnish young people stealing property from their peers by threatening them with violence or actually assaulting them. The threat of violence has often been underlined with bladed or other weapons, which an increasing number of young people now carry in public. 

The police and other parties working with young people have observed the development of criminal activity among adolescents and minors with concern. For example, there has been a significant increase in robberies and crimes against life and limb perpetrated by young people. As such, links can be seen between street gangs and juvenile delinquency that may turn into overlaps between the phenomena over time. Unlike with traditional organised crime, it is possible to become a member of a street gang overnight. It may only take one serious crime to step from the periphery into the inner circle. In the event that street gangs establish themselves in Finnish society, it is important to recognise the possible “career path” that they offer to minors who veer towards criminal activity. 

Prevention is key 

Preventive measures are key in putting a stop to symptomatic behaviour involving crime or even integration into a street gang. The City of Vantaa’s safety plan has identified factors that increase susceptibility, such as dropping out of school, the family’s poor socioeconomic situation, segregation and so on. The factors that increase susceptibility have been determined, but the practical means need to be adjusted to match the changing operating environment. It is a different thing altogether to intervene in the activities of a shoplifting 13-year-old than a 16-year-old already skirting the periphery of a street gang. 

In other words, the same factors that increase susceptibility can be seen behind juvenile delinquency and the street gang phenomenon, but the preventive measures must account for the differences between them. Prevention is always the most affordable method. If successful, preventive measures can keep young people from resorting to crime or, in the worst case scenario, ending up in a street gang. In this context, public operators, such as child welfare services, schools and youth services, can still impact the choices made by young people. When serious crimes come into the picture, affecting the activities of young people becomes a more reactive and police-driven process with more limited means of making a difference. 

Petri Haapanen, Safety Specialist, and Kari-Pekka Raulahti, Police Coordinator