Sao Paulo
Criminal groups in the Swedish region use Spotify to launder money. According to local newspaper Svenska Dagbladet, these groups divert profits from drug trafficking, robberies, fraud and murder into fake downloads of music from artists linked to crime.
The vehicle investigation confirmed the operation with four gang members in Stockholm and was based on data from the Swedish police.
According to Dagbladet, money laundering involves converting revenue into Bitcoin cryptocurrencies, which in turn pays third parties to generate the fake downloads. Informants indicate that one million downloads on the streaming service generate a payment of between $3,600 and $5,400, or R$17,800 and R$26,800, respectively.
In an official statement on the case, Spotify explains that the project is “a challenge for the entire industry” and that it is currently working to resolve the situation internally.
For several years now, conflicts between gangs have characterized everyday life in Sweden. Last year, Swedish police documented 90 bomb attacks and 391 shootings in the country, as well as 62 deaths as a result of the crimes.