Wild West Stockholm: Gangland violence grips Swedish capital as rapper, 18, is executed on a sports field, a second man is shot dead and bomb blast kills innocent woman, 25, in her home within 12 hours

An 18-year-old rapper executed on a sports field, a second man shot dead and a 25-year-old woman killed in a devastating bomb attack are just the latest victims of gang violence in Stockholm.

The streets of the Swedish capital have descended into a bloodbath amid a wave of lawlessness, with the three murders committed within 12 hours of each other.

Late on Wednesday, an 18-year-old rapper was shot dead at the Mälarhöjden sports field in Fruängen in southern Stockholm in a brutal attack during a football practice.

Within hours, one man was killed and another injured in a shooting in Jordbro, south of the Swedish capital. Minutes after police were called for reports of gunfire, a pickup truck crashed into an area home before two men ran from the vehicle.

And early Thursday morning, a 25-year-old woman died in an explosion that ripped through her home and four adjacent buildings in Storvreta, outside Uppsala, north of Stockholm.

Footage of the bomb’s aftermath shows the woman’s building torn apart, with smashed windows hanging haphazardly from the front of her home in a scene witnesses have likened to a war zone.

Police believe the woman, a master’s student studying to become a teacher, was not the target of the bomb. The real target was a relative of gangster Rawa Majid, known as the ‘Purple Fox’, who lived next door to the victim but appeared to be away at the time, reports Aftonbladet.

“There were panicky screams and the smell of smoke,” said a neighbor of the young woman Express. “It was like we were in a war zone.”

The two fatal shootings bring the death toll from gun violence in September to 11, making it the deadliest month for shootings since police began keeping statistics in 2016.

It was not known whether the shootings or the blast were related, but Swedish media said at least two of the three events were linked to a feud between criminal gangs, a growing problem in Sweden with drive-by shootings and bombings.

Two gangs – one led by Swedish-Turkish dual national Rawa Majid and the other allegedly led by Mikael Tenezos, a former junior ice hockey player known as ‘The Greek’ – allegedly fighting over drugs and weapons.

Tenezos is suspected of being one of Sweden’s biggest drug dealers as leader of the Valley Network, known as ‘Dalen’, and sees Majid as a threat.

Majid’s efforts to strengthen the local drug trade are said to have brought him into conflict with Tenezos, with the pair ordering attacks on associates or friends of each other in the Stockholm area.

According to police, six people in their twenties – one woman and five men – have been arrested in connection with the fatal shooting in Jordbro, the Swedish newspaper reports Sydsvenskan.

Concerned residents called police just before midnight Wednesday after hearing gunshots on the street below their homes. Police arrived on the scene and found two injured men, one seriously, lying on the ground in the street.

One of the men, who has not been named, died in hospital from his injuries, while the second is being treated for less serious injuries. The police have now started an investigation into murder and attempted murder.

Police said two people have been arrested over the explosion in Uppsala, which was so violent that the facades of two houses were blown away.

In connection with the fatal shooting of a well-known rapper, who has not yet been named, police say they are looking for a gray Toyota RAV4 with tinted rear windows.

Earlier this week, two powerful explosions ripped through homes in central Sweden, injuring at least three people and damaging buildings, leaving bricks and window parts scattered outside.

Sweden’s centre-right government has tightened laws to tackle gang-related crime, while the head of Sweden’s police force has said warring gangs have brought an “unprecedented” wave of violence to the country.

Justice Minister Gunnar Strommer reiterated this week that Sweden will increase the penalty for unlicensed possession of explosives from three to five years from April 1, when new legislation comes into effect.

Magadalena Andersson, the leader of the main opposition party, the Social Democrats, told Swedish Radio SR that the army could perform certain functions to free up the police by carrying out transport and surveillance functions.

Mr Strommer said it was “irrelevant to deploy the military” but that he was willing to listen to all sides when it comes to resolving the wave of violence.