COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) – Copenhagen’s mayor on Monday told foreigners not to buy marijuana in the city’s Christiania district, where a 30-year-old man was shot dead and four others injured two weeks ago in a gang turf war over marijuana. I called out. trade in the area.
The Aug. 26 murder was the latest in a bloody feud between rival gangs the Hells Angels and the outlawed Loyal to Family. Both seek to monopolize cannabis sales in Christiania.
A 28-year-old man from the Loyal to Family gang was arrested Friday in connection with the shooting.
The sale of marijuana is illegal in Denmark.
Copenhagen Mayor Sophie Hestrup Andersen said: “The spiral of violence in Christiania is extremely worrying.” She urged the “hundreds of thousands of visiting tourists and the many new international students who have recently moved to Copenhagen to stay away from Pusher Street and avoid buying cannabis and other drugs.”
Christiania has become one of Copenhagen’s biggest tourist attractions, and many of the tourists are foreigners.
“Buying marijuana on a festive night may seem innocent, but your money ends up being a crime that puts guns on the streets and puts innocent people at risk,” said Heistorp Andersen. “Think about the fact that it goes into the organization’s pocket.”
A day after the latest shooting, Christiania residents called for the closure of Pusher Street, which is home to numerous drug booths. Last month, they independently attempted to block off the street using heavy equipment, removing masked men believed to be drug traffickers.
City authorities have not offered concrete solutions to drug trafficking in Christiania. Police have demolished drug booths several times in the past, but they have reappeared.
Last October, a man was shot and killed while selling marijuana at one of the aptly named marijuana booths on Pusher Street. In 2021, a man was shot and killed at an entrance on the same street.
In 1973, hippies began squatting on a former naval base and the Christiania neighborhood was formed. They followed the flower power ideals that were popular at the time. They want free marijuana, limited government influence, and no cars or police while painting buildings in bright psychedelic colors. Approximately 700 adults and 150 children live in this area.