47 charged after extensive police operation in Oslo – weapons and drugs seized
Nearly 50 people have been charged following over a year of covert investigation into a criminal network in Oslo. 15 weapons and 5 million kroner are among the seizures.
Hidden camera captured shooting in car park basement
Six men gather in a car park basement in Oslo. The lights from a Porsche and a Volvo illuminate the dimly lit premises. One of the men produces a submachine gun and fires. A pistol is also tested. In the middle of the group stands Shahbaz Dad (44), a previously convicted gang murderer.
What none of them know is that a hidden camera captures everything on film.
NRK can now reveal how a top-secret investigation, which ran for over a year, has resulted in nearly 50 people being charged with conspiracy to murder, illegal possession of firearms and drugs offences. 15 weapons and 5 million kroner have been seized, as have several dozen kilos of drugs.
The network was designated highest priority
"When we weighed the various criminal environments against each other in 2024, we believed this was the network that was most important to combat," says Kenneth Wilberg, head of the intelligence section at Oslo Police, to NRK.
The ability and willingness to use violence, dangerous connections and access to weapons made police concerned. In secret, they launched a high-priority investigation with one clear objective: to apprehend as many people as possible with ties to the network – both foot soldiers and masterminds.
Drug trafficking was what police first noticed, in varying quantities and in Oslo, other places in the Østlandet region, but also in northern and southern Norway. The network also has branches abroad, according to police.
"We saw signs of extensive drug trafficking into Norway, extensive spending of money, money laundering, and we linked it to the use of violence and weapons," says Arvid Utby, head of the organised crime section at Oslo Police.
Possible murder prevented
Three months after the shooting in the car park basement, two cars full of people park outside the home of a man in his 30s in Oslo. A few weeks earlier, he had declared war on Dad in a video circulating on social media.
"I declare war," the man said in the video, in which he claimed to have subjected Dad to violence.
Surveillance officers continued to track the network's movements. Phones and rooms were being tapped. When the cars approached the man's residence, police believed the declaration of war could cost him his life.
"Generally in criminal environments we often see that if people are subjected to something, they respond in kind. If not, they lose honour," says intelligence chief Wilberg.
Seven men were arrested outside the flat. The possible murder was prevented. All seven were later charged with conspiracy to murder.
28 kilos of amphetamine in the boot
Two weeks after the foiled murder plot in Oslo, police stopped a white Tesla in Innlandet. At the wheel was a 19-year-old man with no previous convictions. In the boot lay 28 kilos of amphetamine and 10 kilos of hash – with a street value of several million kroner.
The 19-year-old was arrested in connection with the murder plot but released a short time later. The man's defence counsel, Sverre Sjøvold, declines to comment on the case.
Shahbaz Dad arrested early in the morning
Early one morning, an unmarked car pulls up outside an apartment building in central Oslo. Heavily armed police jump out. The emergency response unit makes its way into the building, and a few minutes later a man in handcuffs is led out.
It is Shahbaz Dad (44), a former member of both the A-gang and B-gang.
"We suspect he had a central role in the network," says prosecutor Philip Green to NRK.
In 2009, Dad ordered the murder of gang rival Mohammed "Jeddi" Javed, leader of Young Guns, who was found murdered in a burned-out car at Haugerud in Oslo on 19 January 2009. Dad was sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment for the murder, which was carried out by the now deceased Stig Millehaugen.
Now Dad is charged with planning to murder the man in his 30s. The two are believed to have had a long-running conflict that flared up in autumn 2024, according to NRK's information. Dad's defence counsel, Inam Ali, declines to comment on the case. Neither does the victim's legal representative, Kaja de Vibe Malling.
120 criminal networks in the capital
Police mapping shows that 120 different criminal networks operate in Oslo. 50 of the networks are linked to drug trafficking, violence and weapons, and around 800 people are involved in these.
"These are figures that are fluid, so there is no definitive answer. But it gives us an indication of where we stand in the landscape," says Wilberg.
Much of the crime that occurs across the country originates in Oslo. Police saw this clearly when they began tracking the network in this case.
Last year, police received 600 million kroner from the state budget for a national effort against criminal networks.
"This means we can collaborate with other police districts to a greater extent than previously," says Wilberg.
This form of criminality is among the greatest security threats in Europe, according to Europol. The threat in Norway has been increasing in recent years, according to police.
Submachine guns and automatic rifles seized
Among the roughly 15 seized weapons are machetes, pistols and automatic rifles. Police believe the network had illegal access to these.
NRK was able to ride in the car of section leader Pål, head of Special Operations at Oslo Police District, during some of the operations. He led the emergency response unit's operations against the network throughout much of the investigation.
Source: Google News NO — Crime