– It is frightening that such a small town has so many serious incidents of violence, says Gunnar Horpestad Jacobsen. He regularly drives a bus between Stavanger and Haugesund. He also did that on the afternoon of August 16. Then a man attacked at least 14 people in Haugesund with a gas pistol. – I saw a man go to a waiting passenger with the barrel of a gun. Then I realized that this was serious, and that I had to do something, says Jacobsen. Together with another man, he managed to knock the weapon out of the perpetrator’s hands. The police later arrested the perpetrator. The police finally arrested the man who threatened others with a gas pistol in Haugesund. Photo: Gisle Jørgensen / news In just a short time there have been several episodes of violence in Haugesund. This summer, another man threatened people with a knife in a shopping centre. In August, a man was found murdered in an apartment south of Haugesund. – I have noticed that there have been several episodes of violence in Haugesund, says bus driver Jacobsen. At the peak of violence Figures from Statistics Norway show that Haugesund is at the peak of violence in Norway. And the city has done that for the past ten years. The number of reported cases of violence and mistreatment in 2021/2022 was 10.2 per 1,000 inhabitants in Haugesund. Oslo has 11.1. In comparison, Stavanger has 7.4 and Bergen 7.8. The neighboring municipality of Karmøy has 6.4. Coming from other places Police station chief in Haugesund Edgar Mannes does not like that Haugesund is at the peak of violence in the country. – Of course it is worrying to have such high violence figures, he says. At the same time, Mannes sees a clear cause for the problem. – Haugesund has relatively few inhabitants compared to the municipalities that use the city for service and culture. The number of violent incidents should have been distributed among the inhabitants of the surrounding municipalities as well, says Mannes. Police station chief Edgar Mannes. Photo: Rosa Irén Villalobos / news Haugesund had 38,224 inhabitants in the second quarter of this year. At the same time, the municipality thus functions as a regional center for around 110,000 inhabitants. In comparison, the neighboring municipality of Karmøy had 43,081 inhabitants in the 2nd quarter. More violence in the cities The level of violence is generally higher in cities than in the countryside. This is confirmed by researcher Lars Roar Frøyland at Oslo Met. He believes that the fact that the city is a regional center can play a role. At the same time, he believes that similar cities that are regional centers should have similarly high figures. – Of course, that does not mean that it is wrong, as there can be special things about the way Haugesund works that are important, says Frøyland. Lars Roar Frøyland researches, among other things, violence and crime among young people. Photo: NOVA He adds that there may be particular aspects of the social environment in the city that cause more violence. – Previous research also shows that it is often the same people who are both prosecuted for and subjected to violence, he says. Want to reduce the numbers The police, together with Haugesund municipality and the nightlife industry in the city, have worked actively to reduce the violence figures in the city. Nine years ago, they started the “Safe night out” campaign. After that, there has been, among other things, more visible police in action in the evenings and nights. – We want it to be even safer. And we will be present together with guards around the city to try to prevent the violence from occurring, says Mannes. The police in Haugesund investigated a crime scene in August this year. Photo: Gisle Jørgensen / news Researcher Lars Roar Frøyland says violence prevention is complicated. And there is rarely a quick fix. – Violence is closely linked to difficult living conditions, both when growing up and more generally. This means that early efforts to improve living conditions in the population can be important. At the same time, these things take time. – Visible police presence can be important, Frøyland believes. Bus driver Gunnar Horpestad Jacobsen. Photo: Rosa Irén Villalobos / news Police station chief Edgar Mannes believes Haugesund is a safe city to travel in. Nor does bus driver Gunnar Horpestad Jacobsen feel unsafe in Haugesund, even though he ended up in the middle of a violent incident. – I see it as an isolated incident. I always feel safe here, he says.
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Haugesund at the peak of violence in Norway – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
