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Sweden to fight crime on welfare systems

Xinhua, May 5, 2017 Adjust font size:

A government-ordered inquiry presented on Friday a number of measures to prevent, reveal and fight organized crime aimed at exploiting Sweden's welfare system.

The inquiry concluded that Swedish authorities lack the means to combat welfare crimes and that there is faulty information in welfare payment registers, meaning payments are made out to criminals that are out to abuse the system.

Further, the inquiry concluded that Swedish authorities lack the means to keep tabs on whether their registers contain correct data.

"We have to increase society's ability to stop and convict individuals engaged in crimes that target the welfare system," Minister for Justice and Migration Morgan Johansson said in a statement. "We have to recognize that this constitutes organized crime."

One of the proposed measures presented on Friday is the establishment of a new unit within the Swedish Social Insurance Agency that would be dedicated to investigating social welfare crimes.

Another proposal is to increase possibilities to exchange information across different authorities. The inquiry also suggested introducing harsher punishments for aggravated welfare crimes. Endit