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{{Short description|Swedish-Turkish criminal}}
{{Short description|Swedish-Turkish criminal}}
'''Rawa Majid''' (born July 12, 1986), known as the '''Kurdish Fox''' ({{lang-sv|Kurdiska räven}}), is a [[Swedes|Swedish]] criminal, raised in [[Uppsala]], but since 2018 resident in Turkey. He is suspected of being the main leader of the Swedish [[criminal organisation]] [[Foxtrot (criminal network)|Foxtrot]], which is linked to numerous [[Gun violence in Sweden|shootings]] and [[bombings in Sweden]], especially in the [[Stockholm County|Stockholm]] and [[Uppsala County|Uppsala regions]], often carried out by children. The victims have been children, relatives to rival criminals and to former friends of Majid, as well as unintended victims.<ref name="tv42">{{cite web|access-date=2023-07-06|language=sv|title=Mapping: Rawa Majid is the "Kurdish Fox"|url=https://www.tv4.se/artikel/4pwkGGe1wTx9t21BT8T6gi/kartlaeggning-rawa-majid-aer-kurdiska-raeven|work=www.tv4.se}}<!-- auto-translated by Module:CS1 translator --></ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-09-16 |title="Kurdyjski Lis": Kim jest Rawa Majida, król szwedzkiego podziemia - Skandynawiainfo |url=https://skandynawiainfo.pl/kurdyjski-lis-kim-jest-rawa-majida-krol-szwedzkiego-podziemia/ |access-date=2023-09-21 |language=pl-PL}}</ref> He is in conflict with several other criminal gangs and former Foxtrot members at the same time.<ref name=three-front-war/> He is internationally wanted for serious drug offenses and preparation for murder since August 2020,<ref name=":12">{{cite web|access-date=2023-05-18|title=Rawa Majid and the Foxtrot Network|url=https://www.krimfup.se/articles/rawa-majid-och-foxtrot-natverket|work=krimfup.se (Preliminary criminal reports online)|language=sv}}<!-- auto-translated by Module:CS1 translator --></ref><ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-05-20|language=sv-SE|title=Rawa Majid, 36 years old|url=https://www.hitta.se/rawa+majid/-/person/nntzeikm|work=hitta.se}}<!-- auto-translated by Module:CS1 translator --></ref><ref name=":4">{{cite news|title=Mini-documentary: How Rawa Majid became the ”Kurdish fox”|url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/sa-blev-rawa-majid-kurdiska-raven|newspaper=SVT Nyheter|date=2023-09-13|access-date=2023-09-13|language=sv|first=Malvina|last=Britts}}</ref> and has been named as one of Sweden's most wanted criminals.<ref name="tv42" />
'''Rawa Majid''' ({{langx|ckb|ڕەوا مەجید}}) (born July 12, 1986 in [[Kermanshah]]), known as the '''Kurdish Fox''' ({{langx|sv|Kurdiska räven}}), is an Iranian-born [[Kurds in Sweden|Kurdish-Swedish]] criminal. Since 2018, he has been a resident of Turkey, but Majid has fled on multiple occasions to [[Iraqi Kurdistan]] and [[Iran]]. Majid is suspected of being the main leader of the Swedish [[criminal organisation]] [[Foxtrot (criminal network)|Foxtrot]], which is linked to numerous [[Gun violence in Sweden|shootings]] and [[bombings in Sweden]]. The violence has generally involved the [[Stockholm County|Stockholm]] and [[Uppsala County|Uppsala]] regions, and was often carried out by underage teenagers. Victims have included children, the relatives of rival criminals, former friends of Majid's, and many unintended targets.<ref name="tv42">{{cite web|access-date=2023-07-06|language=sv|title=Mapping: Rawa Majid is the "Kurdish Fox"|url=https://www.tv4.se/artikel/4pwkGGe1wTx9t21BT8T6gi/kartlaeggning-rawa-majid-aer-kurdiska-raeven|work=www.tv4.se}}<!-- auto-translated by Module:CS1 translator --></ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-09-16 |title="Kurdyjski Lis": Kim jest Rawa Majida, król szwedzkiego podziemia - Skandynawiainfo |url=https://skandynawiainfo.pl/kurdyjski-lis-kim-jest-rawa-majida-krol-szwedzkiego-podziemia/ |access-date=2023-09-21 |language=pl-PL}}</ref> Majid is in conflict with several other criminal gangs as well as former Foxtrot members.<ref name=three-front-war/> He has been wanted internationally since 2020 for major drug offenses and the planning of murders,<ref name=":12">{{cite web|access-date=2023-05-18|title=Rawa Majid and the Foxtrot Network|url=https://www.krimfup.se/articles/rawa-majid-och-foxtrot-natverket|work=krimfup.se (Preliminary criminal reports online)|language=sv}}<!-- auto-translated by Module:CS1 translator --></ref><ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-05-20|language=sv-SE|title=Rawa Majid, 36 years old|url=https://www.hitta.se/rawa+majid/-/person/nntzeikm|work=hitta.se}}<!-- auto-translated by Module:CS1 translator --></ref><ref name=":4">{{cite news|title=Mini-documentary: How Rawa Majid became the "Kurdish fox"|url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/sa-blev-rawa-majid-kurdiska-raven|newspaper=SVT Nyheter|date=2023-09-13|access-date=2023-09-13|language=sv|first=Malvina|last=Britts}}</ref> and has been named one of Sweden's most wanted criminals.<ref name="tv42" /> Majid was detained by Iranian police,<ref>https://www.nrk.no/urix/svt_-_den-kurdiske-reven_-er-tatt-1.16587753. [[NRK]].no. Retrieved 2023-10-09</ref> near its [[Iran–Turkey border|border with Turkey]], on 6 October 2023.<ref>https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/uppgifter-rawa-majid-har-gripits-i-iran</ref>


== Biography ==
== Biography ==
Majid's parents are from [[Iraqi Kurdistan]], but he was born in [[Iran]] (where he is a citizen) when they were fleeing Iraq on the way to Sweden during the [[Iran-Iraq war]]. The family settled in Uppsala in Sweden when he was one month old.<ref name="tv42" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-04-11 |title=On Turkey, Sweden balances NATO aspirations against fighting crime at home |url=https://www.politico.eu/article/turkey-sweden-balance-nato-aspirations-fight-crime-home/ |access-date=2023-09-20 |website=POLITICO |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-09-20|language=sv|title=PrimeCrime: Rawa Majid's mother tells about how the family came to Sweden.|url=https://www.youtube.com/shorts/IASZ2W6rbpg}}<!-- auto-translated by Module:CS1 translator --></ref>
Majid's parents are from [[Iraqi Kurdistan]], but he was born in [[Iran]] when they were fleeing Iraq on the way to Sweden during the [[Iran-Iraq war]]. The family settled in Uppsala in Sweden when he was one month old.<ref name="tv42" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-04-11 |title=On Turkey, Sweden balances NATO aspirations against fighting crime at home |url=https://www.politico.eu/article/turkey-sweden-balance-nato-aspirations-fight-crime-home/ |access-date=2023-09-20 |website=POLITICO |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-09-20|language=sv|title=PrimeCrime: Rawa Majid's mother tells about how the family came to Sweden.|url=https://www.youtube.com/shorts/IASZ2W6rbpg}}<!-- auto-translated by Module:CS1 translator --></ref>


===Relocation to Turkey===
===Relocation to Turkey===
After Majid served a long prison sentence, his cousin was murdered, causing him to experience an escalating threat. Because of the threat, he was allowed by Swedish authorities to leave Sweden in the summer of 2018, despite being under surveillance and on probation, and has since resided in [[Turkey]].<ref name=europeanconservative2023-09-18/><ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-03-24 |title=The prison authorities let the designated gang leader ”Kurdish fox” leave Sweden |language=sv |url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/lokalt/uppsala/kurdiske-raven-kriminalvarden-lat-utpekade-gangledaren-fly-sverige}}</ref> He purchased [[Turkish citizenship]] in exchange for investments in 2020 through the [[Immigrant investor programs#Turkey|Turkish citizenship by investment]] program. Hence, Turkey refuses to capture and extradite him.<ref>{{cite news |title= Gangsters Have a New Way of Avoiding Capture: Becoming Turkish |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/jg58jp/drug-traffickers-turkish-citizenship |access-date=2023-09-16 |newspaper=VICE World News |date=2023-04-17}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title= On Turkey, Sweden balances NATO aspirations against fighting ... |url=https://www.politico.eu/article/turkey-sweden-balance-nato-aspirations-fight-crime-home/ |access-date=2023-09-16 |newspaper=POLITICO |date=2023-04-11}}</ref><ref name=europeanconservative2023-09-18>{{Cite web |first=Robert|last=Semonsen |date=2023-04-12 |title=Turkey Refuses To Extradite Drug Lord to NATO-Seeking Sweden |url=https://europeanconservative.com/articles/news/turkey-refuses-to-extradite-drug-lord-to-nato-seeking-sweden/ |access-date=2023-09-18 |website=europeanconservative.com |language=en-US}}</ref> Swedish police shared intelligence about an operation to capture Majid with Turkish police, at highest-level, but the intelligence was leaked to members of the Foxtrot criminal network in 2022, according to Swedish police.<ref>{{Cite web |last=English |first=Duvar |date=2023-09-15 |title=High-level intelligence shared with Turkey leaked to criminals, Swedish press says |url=https://www.duvarenglish.com/high-level-intelligence-shared-with-turkey-leaked-to-criminals-swedish-press-says-news-62998 |access-date=2023-09-17 |website=duvarenglish.com |language=tr-TR}}</ref> In 2023, the Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden threatened to suspend Sweden's financial aid to Turkey if Majid is not extradited, but later retracted the statement.<ref>{{cite news |title= Sweden warns Turkey - threatens with strong action |url=https://marcusoscarsson.se/sverige-varnar-turkiet-hotar-med-kraftfull-atgard/ |access-date=2023-09-16 |newspaper=Marcus Oscarsson |date=2023-09-16|language=sv}}</ref>
After Majid served a long prison sentence, his cousin was murdered. Because of the escalating threat Majid then experienced, he was allowed by Swedish authorities to leave Sweden in the summer of 2018, despite being under surveillance and on probation, and has since resided in [[Turkey]].<ref name=europeanconservative2023-09-18/><ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-03-24 |title=The prison authorities let the designated gang leader "Kurdish fox" leave Sweden |language=sv |url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/lokalt/uppsala/kurdiske-raven-kriminalvarden-lat-utpekade-gangledaren-fly-sverige}}</ref> He managed to purchase [[Turkish citizenship]] in exchange for investments in 2020 through the Turkish [[Immigrant investor programs#Turkey|golden visa program]], despite being wanted by the Interpol. An extradition of Majid from Turkey has been requested by Sweden, but Turkey is strict on refusing to extradite citizens unless they commit crimes in Turkey or have dual citizenships.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Therefore, Turkey does not extradite Rawa Majid: "It is locked".|url=https://www.tv4.se/artikel/6N6AOXwXS0XjnqHwnwQ41y/daerfoer-laemnar-inte-turkiet-ut-rawa-majid-daer-aer-det-last |access-date=2023-10-04 |website=www.tv4.se |language=sv}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title= Gangsters Have a New Way of Avoiding Capture: Becoming Turkish |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/jg58jp/drug-traffickers-turkish-citizenship |access-date=2023-09-16 |newspaper=VICE World News |date=2023-04-17}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title= On Turkey, Sweden balances NATO aspirations against fighting ... |url=https://www.politico.eu/article/turkey-sweden-balance-nato-aspirations-fight-crime-home/ |access-date=2023-09-16 |newspaper=POLITICO |date=2023-04-11}}</ref><ref name=europeanconservative2023-09-18>{{Cite web |first=Robert|last=Semonsen |date=2023-04-12 |title=Turkey Refuses To Extradite Drug Lord to NATO-Seeking Sweden |url=https://europeanconservative.com/articles/news/turkey-refuses-to-extradite-drug-lord-to-nato-seeking-sweden/ |access-date=2023-09-18 |website=europeanconservative.com |language=en-US}}</ref>
Swedish police shared intelligence about an operation to capture Majid with Turkish police, at highest-level, but the intelligence was leaked to members of the [[Foxtrot_(criminal_network)|Foxtrot criminal network]] in 2022, according to Swedish police, and thus the operation was made impossible.<ref>{{Cite web |last=English |first=Duvar |date=2023-09-15 |title=High-level intelligence shared with Turkey leaked to criminals, Swedish press says |url=https://www.duvarenglish.com/high-level-intelligence-shared-with-turkey-leaked-to-criminals-swedish-press-says-news-62998 |access-date=2023-09-17 |website=duvarenglish.com |language=tr-TR}}</ref> In September 2023, the Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden threatened to suspend Sweden's financial aid to Turkey if Majid is not extradited, but later retracted the statement.<ref>{{cite news |title= Sweden warns Turkey - threatens with strong action |url=https://marcusoscarsson.se/sverige-varnar-turkiet-hotar-med-kraftfull-atgard/ |access-date=2023-09-16 |newspaper=Marcus Oscarsson |date=2023-09-16|language=sv}}</ref> In September 2023, Majid was believed to make an attempt to leave Turkey with a forged Italian passport. A legal process against Majid begun in Turkey, where the Turkish authorities started to investigate whether he had used fraudulent documents.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kardell |first=Elin Janvik |date=2023-09-21 |title=Details: The Kurdish fox is trying to leave Turkey |url=https://www.gp.se/1.110487553 |access-date=2023-10-04 |website=gp.se |language=sv}}</ref>


== Crimes committed by Majid and/or the Foxtrot network ==
== Crimes committed by Majid and/or the Foxtrot network ==
Majid has previously been sentenced to eight years in prison for [[Drug-related crime|serious drug offenses]] and [[assault]] on two separate occasions. In the criminal register, he appears for the first time as a 19-year-old, and he has been convicted of, among other things, [[burglary]] and [[cigarette smuggling]].<ref name="tv42" /><ref name=":12" />
Majid has previously been sentenced to eight years in prison for [[Drug-related crime|serious drug offenses]] and [[assault]] on two separate occasions. In the criminal register, he appears for the first time as a 19-year-old, and he has been convicted of, among other things, [[burglary]] and [[cigarette smuggling]].<ref name="tv42" /><ref name=":12" />


Rawa Majid was previously<ref name=three-front-war/> in conflict with the rival [[Vårbynätverket|Vårby criminal network]]. On September 9, 2020, a 25-year-old man was shot and killed in the city of [[Uppsala]] in what is believed to have been a gang-related attack. The victim is thought to be a member of the Vårby network, and the shooting is believed to have been carried out by members of the Foxtrot network.<ref name=":12"/>
Majid was previously<ref name=three-front-war/> in conflict with the rival [[Vårbynätverket|Vårby criminal network]]. On September 9, 2020, a 25-year-old man was shot and killed in the city of [[Uppsala]] in what is believed to have been a gang-related attack. The victim is thought to be a member of the Vårby network, and the shooting is believed to have been carried out by members of the Foxtrot network.<ref name=":12"/>


The [[Bandidos Motorcycle Club|Bandidos]] is another of the criminal networks that Majid is in conflict with. A 33-year-old man was shot dead on March 4, 2022 just outside Bandido premises. He had probably been mistaken for a Bandido member. Several members of the Foxtrot network have been charged with the murder. Majid is believed to have planned the assassination, but has not gone to trial for the murder because he is absconding in Turkey.<ref name="tv42"/> Voice recordings show that two weeks later, Rawa Majid and an 18-year-old man planned to carry out another murder against the leader of the Bandidos, but the act was interrupted when they were discovered by police detectives. Rawa Majid is in custody in his absence on suspicion of preparation for murder.<ref>{{cite web |title=Hear the threat of the Kurdish fox Rawa Majid – sending voice messages|url=https://www.tv4.se/artikel/3YCFme1pS7aW1YitO5fLii/hoer-kurdiska-raevens-hot-jag-njuter-av-det-haer |access-date=2023-09-27 |website=www.tv4.se |language=sv}}</ref> On September 6, 2023, he is believed to have tasked a 17-year-old with blowing up the Bandido premises.<ref name=three-front-war>{{cite web|title=Rawa Majid's merciless threefront war|url=https://www.dn.se/sverige/rawa-majids-skoningslosa-trefrontskrig/ |newspaper=Dagens Nyheter|date=2023-09-20|language=sv}}</ref>
The [[Bandidos Motorcycle Club|Bandidos]] is another of the criminal networks that Majid is in conflict with. A 33-year-old man was shot dead on March 4, 2022 just outside Bandido premises. He had probably been mistaken for a Bandido member. Several members of the Foxtrot network have been charged with the murder. Majid is believed to have planned the assassination, but has not gone to trial for the murder because he is absconding in Turkey.<ref name="tv42"/> Voice recordings show that two weeks later, Majid and an 18-year-old man planned to carry out another murder against the leader of the Bandidos, but the act was interrupted when they were discovered by police detectives. Majid is in custody in his absence on suspicion of preparation for murder.<ref>{{cite web |title=Hear the threat of the Kurdish fox Rawa Majid – sending voice messages|url=https://www.tv4.se/artikel/3YCFme1pS7aW1YitO5fLii/hoer-kurdiska-raevens-hot-jag-njuter-av-det-haer |access-date=2023-09-27 |website=www.tv4.se |language=sv}}</ref> On September 6, 2023, he is believed to have tasked a 17-year-old with blowing up the Bandido premises.<ref name=three-front-war>{{cite web|title=Rawa Majid's merciless threefront war|url=https://www.dn.se/sverige/rawa-majids-skoningslosa-trefrontskrig/ |newspaper=Dagens Nyheter|date=2023-09-20|language=sv}}</ref>


Majid is in an escalating conflict with the Dalen gang since December 2022,<ref name=three-front-war/> and with its leader Mikael Tenezos, also called ''The Greek''. It started when a 21-year-old switched sides from the Dalen network to the Foxtrot network, and hired teenagers to shoot people from the Dalen network and their relatives in order to forcibly take over the drug market in the city of Sundsvall from them.<ref>{{cite web|title=How Sundsvall ended up in the middle of the gang leaders' war|url=https://www.st.nu/2023-09-15/en-strid-pa-liv-och-dod-sa-hamnade-sundsvall-mitt-i-gangledarnas-krig|newspaper=Sundsvalls Tidning|date=2023-09-15|language=sv}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=MSN|url=https://www.msn.com/|work=www.msn.com|access-date=2023-09-26}}</ref> It has been reported that several acts of violence against the Dalen Network, also in Stockholm, and their allies have been carried out by people believed to have been hired by the Foxtrot Network and Rawa Majid. The executioners are thought to have been linked to Majid and Foxtrot's allies the Bridge Network or the Zero Network.<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-05-18|date=2023-01-20|title=The gang leaders at the center of the violent conflict |url=https://www.expressen.se/nyheter/krim/kurdiske-raven-och-greken-i-centrum-for-valdsamma-konflikten-/|newspaper=www.expressen.se|language=sv}}</ref><ref name=":02">{{cite web|access-date=2023-05-18|date=2023-05-03|language=sv|title=Double hunt for "The Greek" – wanted after the violent act|url=https://www.aftonbladet.se/a/8J72dd|newspaper=www.aftonbladet.se}}</ref>
Majid has been in an escalating conflict with the Dalen gang since December 2022,<ref name=three-front-war/> and with its leader Mikael Tenezos, also called ''The Greek'', who resides outside of Sweden. It started when a 21-year-old switched sides from the Dalen network to the Foxtrot network, and hired teenagers to violently target his former allies from the Dalen network and their relatives in order to take over the local drug market in the city of Sundsvall from them.<ref>{{cite web |title=En strid på liv och död – så hamnade Sundsvall mitt i gängledarnas krig |first1=Rolf |last1=Lunneborg |trans-title=How Sundsvall ended up in the middle of the gang leaders' war|url=https://www.st.nu/2023-09-15/en-strid-pa-liv-och-dod-sa-hamnade-sundsvall-mitt-i-gangledarnas-krig|newspaper=Sundsvalls Tidning|date=2023-09-15|language=sv}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=MSN|url=https://www.msn.com/|work=msn.com|access-date=2023-09-26}}</ref> This caused a cycle of revenge between the Foxtrot and Dalen Network, also in Stockholm. Majid and Foxtrot hired allies from the Bridge Network and the Zero Network as executioners.<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2023-05-18|date=2023-01-20|title=The gang leaders at the center of the violent conflict |url=https://www.expressen.se/nyheter/krim/kurdiske-raven-och-greken-i-centrum-for-valdsamma-konflikten-/|newspaper=Expressen |language=sv}}</ref><ref name=":02">{{cite web|access-date=2023-05-18|date=2023-05-03|language=sv|title=Double hunt for "The Greek" – wanted after the violent act|url=https://www.aftonbladet.se/a/8J72dd|newspaper=www.aftonbladet.se}}</ref>


An internal conflict within the Foxtrot network has arisen between Rawa Majid and a phalanx around his former right-hand man Ismail Abdo, who also is living in Turkey. This has led to a spiral of violence in Sweden and Turkey.<ref>{{cite web|title=Majid and Abdo at the center of bloody the gang conflict|url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/rawa-majid-och-ismail-abdo-i-centrum-av-blodiga-gangkonflikten|work=SVT News|date=2023-09-19 |access-date=2023-09-26|language=sv|first=Lars|last=Erik Taubert|first2=Kovan|last2=Alshawish}}</ref> Thus, Rawa Majid is believed to be in a threefront war at least since 2023.<ref name="three-front-war" /> On September 2, 2023, Abdo's mother, a woman in her 60s, was shot and killed in the Gränby area of Uppsala, likely as a revenge for a shooting against Majid and his allies in Turkey. Two teenage boys have been detained on suspicion of having carried out the murder.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Foxtrot network hit by new murder|url=https://brott.ifokus.se/discussion/1569264/natverket-foxtrott-drabbat-av-nytt-mord |access-date=2023-09-27 |website=Brott iFokus (crime in focus)|language=sv}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Dead woman was mother of leader in Kurdish fox grouping|url=https://omni.se/uppgifter-dod-kvinna-mamma-till-ledare-i-kurdiska-ravens-gruppering/a/BW1BB9|work=Omni|date=2023-09-07}}</ref><ref name="svt230908">{{cite web|title=The murder of the mother was revenge for a shooting in Istanbul|url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/lokalt/uppsala/uppgifter-mordet-pa-mamman-var-en-hamnd-pa-en-skjutning-i-istanbul|newspaper=SVT Nyheter|date=2023-09-08|access-date=2023-09-26|language=sv|first=Vivvi|last=Alström}}</ref>
An internal conflict within the Foxtrot network has arisen between Majid and a phalanx around his former right-hand man Ismail Abdo, who also resides in Turkey. This has led to a spiral of violence in Sweden and Turkey.<ref>{{cite web|title=Majid and Abdo at the center of bloody the gang conflict|url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/rawa-majid-och-ismail-abdo-i-centrum-av-blodiga-gangkonflikten|work=SVT News|date=2023-09-19 |access-date=2023-09-26|language=sv|first=Lars|last=Erik Taubert|first2=Kovan|last2=Alshawish}}</ref> Thus, Majid is believed to be in a threefront war at least since 2023.<ref name="three-front-war" /> On September 2, 2023, Abdo's mother, a woman in her 60s, was shot and killed in the Gränby area of Uppsala, likely as a revenge for a shooting against Majid and his allies in Turkey. Two teenage boys have been detained on suspicion of having carried out the murder.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Foxtrot network hit by new murder|url=https://brott.ifokus.se/discussion/1569264/natverket-foxtrott-drabbat-av-nytt-mord |access-date=2023-09-27 |website=Brott iFokus (crime in focus)|language=sv}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Dead woman was mother of leader in Kurdish fox grouping|url=https://omni.se/uppgifter-dod-kvinna-mamma-till-ledare-i-kurdiska-ravens-gruppering/a/BW1BB9|work=Omni|date=2023-09-07}}</ref><ref name="svt230908">{{cite web|title=The murder of the mother was revenge for a shooting in Istanbul|url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/lokalt/uppsala/uppgifter-mordet-pa-mamman-var-en-hamnd-pa-en-skjutning-i-istanbul|newspaper=SVT Nyheter|date=2023-09-08|access-date=2023-09-26|language=sv|first=Vivvi|last=Alström}}</ref> On September 13, 2023 Majid's mother in law was the target of a shooting in Cervin's building in Uppsala, 70 kilometres north of Stockholm. She escaped unharmed.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-11-17 |title='Child soldiers' and blood feuds: Sweden's out-of-control gang wars |url=https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20231117-child-soldiers-and-blood-feuds-sweden-s-out-of-control-gang-wars |access-date=2023-11-20 |website=France 24 |language=en}}</ref>


==See also==
==See also==
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[[Category:1986 births]]
[[Category:1986 births]]
[[Category:21st-century Kurdish people]]
[[Category:21st-century Swedish criminals]]
[[Category:21st-century Swedish criminals]]
[[Category:Fugitives wanted by Sweden]]
[[Category:Fugitives wanted by Sweden]]
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[[Category:Fugitives wanted on organised crime charges]]
[[Category:Fugitives wanted on organised crime charges]]
[[Category:Iraqi Kurdish people]]
[[Category:Iraqi Kurdish people]]
[[Category:Kurdish criminals]]
[[Category:Kurdish drug traffickers]]
[[Category:Kurdish men]]
[[Category:Kurds in Sweden]]
[[Category:Kurds in Sweden]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People with acquired Turkish citizenship]]
[[Category:Naturalized citizens of Turkey]]
[[Category:Swedish emigrants to Turkey]]
[[Category:Swedish emigrants to Turkey]]
[[Category:Turkish Kurdish people]]
[[Category:Turkish Kurdish people]]

Latest revision as of 14:23, 2 November 2024

Rawa Majid (Sorani Kurdish: ڕەوا مەجید) (born July 12, 1986 in Kermanshah), known as the Kurdish Fox (Swedish: Kurdiska räven), is an Iranian-born Kurdish-Swedish criminal. Since 2018, he has been a resident of Turkey, but Majid has fled on multiple occasions to Iraqi Kurdistan and Iran. Majid is suspected of being the main leader of the Swedish criminal organisation Foxtrot, which is linked to numerous shootings and bombings in Sweden. The violence has generally involved the Stockholm and Uppsala regions, and was often carried out by underage teenagers. Victims have included children, the relatives of rival criminals, former friends of Majid's, and many unintended targets.[1][2] Majid is in conflict with several other criminal gangs as well as former Foxtrot members.[3] He has been wanted internationally since 2020 for major drug offenses and the planning of murders,[4][5][6] and has been named one of Sweden's most wanted criminals.[1] Majid was detained by Iranian police,[7] near its border with Turkey, on 6 October 2023.[8]

Biography

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Majid's parents are from Iraqi Kurdistan, but he was born in Iran when they were fleeing Iraq on the way to Sweden during the Iran-Iraq war. The family settled in Uppsala in Sweden when he was one month old.[1][9][10]

Relocation to Turkey

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After Majid served a long prison sentence, his cousin was murdered. Because of the escalating threat Majid then experienced, he was allowed by Swedish authorities to leave Sweden in the summer of 2018, despite being under surveillance and on probation, and has since resided in Turkey.[11][12] He managed to purchase Turkish citizenship in exchange for investments in 2020 through the Turkish golden visa program, despite being wanted by the Interpol. An extradition of Majid from Turkey has been requested by Sweden, but Turkey is strict on refusing to extradite citizens unless they commit crimes in Turkey or have dual citizenships.[13][14][15][11]

Swedish police shared intelligence about an operation to capture Majid with Turkish police, at highest-level, but the intelligence was leaked to members of the Foxtrot criminal network in 2022, according to Swedish police, and thus the operation was made impossible.[16] In September 2023, the Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden threatened to suspend Sweden's financial aid to Turkey if Majid is not extradited, but later retracted the statement.[17] In September 2023, Majid was believed to make an attempt to leave Turkey with a forged Italian passport. A legal process against Majid begun in Turkey, where the Turkish authorities started to investigate whether he had used fraudulent documents.[18]

Crimes committed by Majid and/or the Foxtrot network

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Majid has previously been sentenced to eight years in prison for serious drug offenses and assault on two separate occasions. In the criminal register, he appears for the first time as a 19-year-old, and he has been convicted of, among other things, burglary and cigarette smuggling.[1][4]

Majid was previously[3] in conflict with the rival Vårby criminal network. On September 9, 2020, a 25-year-old man was shot and killed in the city of Uppsala in what is believed to have been a gang-related attack. The victim is thought to be a member of the Vårby network, and the shooting is believed to have been carried out by members of the Foxtrot network.[4]

The Bandidos is another of the criminal networks that Majid is in conflict with. A 33-year-old man was shot dead on March 4, 2022 just outside Bandido premises. He had probably been mistaken for a Bandido member. Several members of the Foxtrot network have been charged with the murder. Majid is believed to have planned the assassination, but has not gone to trial for the murder because he is absconding in Turkey.[1] Voice recordings show that two weeks later, Majid and an 18-year-old man planned to carry out another murder against the leader of the Bandidos, but the act was interrupted when they were discovered by police detectives. Majid is in custody in his absence on suspicion of preparation for murder.[19] On September 6, 2023, he is believed to have tasked a 17-year-old with blowing up the Bandido premises.[3]

Majid has been in an escalating conflict with the Dalen gang since December 2022,[3] and with its leader Mikael Tenezos, also called The Greek, who resides outside of Sweden. It started when a 21-year-old switched sides from the Dalen network to the Foxtrot network, and hired teenagers to violently target his former allies from the Dalen network and their relatives in order to take over the local drug market in the city of Sundsvall from them.[20][21] This caused a cycle of revenge between the Foxtrot and Dalen Network, also in Stockholm. Majid and Foxtrot hired allies from the Bridge Network and the Zero Network as executioners.[22][23]

An internal conflict within the Foxtrot network has arisen between Majid and a phalanx around his former right-hand man Ismail Abdo, who also resides in Turkey. This has led to a spiral of violence in Sweden and Turkey.[24] Thus, Majid is believed to be in a threefront war at least since 2023.[3] On September 2, 2023, Abdo's mother, a woman in her 60s, was shot and killed in the Gränby area of Uppsala, likely as a revenge for a shooting against Majid and his allies in Turkey. Two teenage boys have been detained on suspicion of having carried out the murder.[25][26][27] On September 13, 2023 Majid's mother in law was the target of a shooting in Cervin's building in Uppsala, 70 kilometres north of Stockholm. She escaped unharmed.[28]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Mapping: Rawa Majid is the "Kurdish Fox"". www.tv4.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 2023-07-06.
  2. ^ ""Kurdyjski Lis": Kim jest Rawa Majida, król szwedzkiego podziemia - Skandynawiainfo" (in Polish). 2023-09-16. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Rawa Majid's merciless threefront war". Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish). 2023-09-20.
  4. ^ a b c "Rawa Majid and the Foxtrot Network". krimfup.se (Preliminary criminal reports online) (in Swedish). Retrieved 2023-05-18.
  5. ^ "Rawa Majid, 36 years old". hitta.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 2023-05-20.
  6. ^ Britts, Malvina (2023-09-13). "Mini-documentary: How Rawa Majid became the "Kurdish fox"". SVT Nyheter (in Swedish). Retrieved 2023-09-13.
  7. ^ https://www.nrk.no/urix/svt_-_den-kurdiske-reven_-er-tatt-1.16587753. NRK.no. Retrieved 2023-10-09
  8. ^ https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/uppgifter-rawa-majid-har-gripits-i-iran
  9. ^ "On Turkey, Sweden balances NATO aspirations against fighting crime at home". POLITICO. 2023-04-11. Retrieved 2023-09-20.
  10. ^ "PrimeCrime: Rawa Majid's mother tells about how the family came to Sweden" (in Swedish). Retrieved 2023-09-20.
  11. ^ a b Semonsen, Robert (2023-04-12). "Turkey Refuses To Extradite Drug Lord to NATO-Seeking Sweden". europeanconservative.com. Retrieved 2023-09-18.
  12. ^ "The prison authorities let the designated gang leader "Kurdish fox" leave Sweden" (in Swedish). 2023-03-24.
  13. ^ "Therefore, Turkey does not extradite Rawa Majid: "It is locked"". www.tv4.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 2023-10-04.
  14. ^ "Gangsters Have a New Way of Avoiding Capture: Becoming Turkish". VICE World News. 2023-04-17. Retrieved 2023-09-16.
  15. ^ "On Turkey, Sweden balances NATO aspirations against fighting ..." POLITICO. 2023-04-11. Retrieved 2023-09-16.
  16. ^ English, Duvar (2023-09-15). "High-level intelligence shared with Turkey leaked to criminals, Swedish press says". duvarenglish.com (in Turkish). Retrieved 2023-09-17.
  17. ^ "Sweden warns Turkey - threatens with strong action". Marcus Oscarsson (in Swedish). 2023-09-16. Retrieved 2023-09-16.
  18. ^ Kardell, Elin Janvik (2023-09-21). "Details: The Kurdish fox is trying to leave Turkey". gp.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 2023-10-04.
  19. ^ "Hear the threat of the Kurdish fox Rawa Majid – sending voice messages". www.tv4.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 2023-09-27.
  20. ^ Lunneborg, Rolf (2023-09-15). "En strid på liv och död – så hamnade Sundsvall mitt i gängledarnas krig" [How Sundsvall ended up in the middle of the gang leaders' war]. Sundsvalls Tidning (in Swedish).
  21. ^ "MSN". msn.com. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  22. ^ "The gang leaders at the center of the violent conflict". Expressen (in Swedish). 2023-01-20. Retrieved 2023-05-18.
  23. ^ "Double hunt for "The Greek" – wanted after the violent act". www.aftonbladet.se (in Swedish). 2023-05-03. Retrieved 2023-05-18.
  24. ^ Erik Taubert, Lars; Alshawish, Kovan (2023-09-19). "Majid and Abdo at the center of bloody the gang conflict". SVT News (in Swedish). Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  25. ^ "The Foxtrot network hit by new murder". Brott iFokus (crime in focus) (in Swedish). Retrieved 2023-09-27.
  26. ^ "Dead woman was mother of leader in Kurdish fox grouping". Omni. 2023-09-07.
  27. ^ Alström, Vivvi (2023-09-08). "The murder of the mother was revenge for a shooting in Istanbul". SVT Nyheter (in Swedish). Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  28. ^ "'Child soldiers' and blood feuds: Sweden's out-of-control gang wars". France 24. 2023-11-17. Retrieved 2023-11-20.