Swedish police left guns in toilets as disciplinary warnings rose sharply
Formal warnings issued within Sweden’s police force have almost quadrupled since 2021. Cases included service weapons left in toilets, an accidental discharge and an alcohol-related incident. At the same time, the authorities have decided that less severe consequences may apply when a weapon is briefly forgotten within a police station’s secured area.
AI-generated illustration. Not a photograph of a specific incident.
Warnings increased from 23 to 91
According to an examination by Swedish public broadcaster SVT, 91 formal warnings were issued for relatively minor misconduct by police employees in 2025, compared with 23 in 2021 — an increase of approximately 296%.
Katharina von Sydow, chair of the Swedish Police Union, has suggested that staff growth and stricter enforcement of disciplinary rules may partly explain the rise. The figures do not automatically mean that officers made four times as many mistakes.
Service weapons forgotten during toilet visits
SVT’s review of disciplinary cases in Stockholm identified several instances of officers leaving service weapons in toilets. Other incidents involved missing ammunition and an accidental discharge while handling a weapon in a gun cabinet.
One officer was also warned after becoming intoxicated in a taxi, vomiting and invoking their position in the police force.
Von Sydow has pointed out that officers sometimes need to remove their duty belts or holsters when using the toilet. That does not remove their responsibility for safe weapon handling.
Rules changed despite the increase
In August, the Swedish police personnel responsibility board changed its approach to certain cases involving forgotten weapons. A single, short-lived incident inside a closed security area of a police station will generally be treated as a minor infraction that does not warrant disciplinary action.
This does not cover every forgotten weapon. Leaving a gun inside a secured police area is materially different from leaving it in a public toilet, and repeated mistakes may still lead to sanctions.
The numbers do not tell the whole story
The reported annual number of formal warnings was 39 in 2020, 23 in 2021, 25 in 2022, 50 in 2023, 71 in 2024 and 91 in 2025. SVT also reported 25 cases resulting in salary deductions in 2025.
Determining whether officers actually made more mistakes would require examining staffing levels, incident reporting and changes in how disciplinary rules were enforced.
Where should the line be drawn?
Even when no one is harmed, mishandling a firearm can have serious consequences. The distinction between a weapon left inside a secure police facility and one accessible to the public is fundamental — but responsibility for the weapon remains with the officer.
Sources: SVT Nyheter and Mitt i, 5 October 2026.