Roadside cameras stolen in Sweden may end up in Russian drones – media

A wave of speed-camera thefts in the country is allegedly linked to the ongoing conflict between Moscow and Kiev

Sweden has been hit recently by a wave of roadside camera thefts, with up to 100 units reportedly missing already. Cameras of the same type have been discovered in Russian drones operating in Ukraine, local media reports, suggesting the occurrences might be linked.

At least three more camera units had gone missing from the E16 highway between the towns of Hofors and Falun over the previous 24-hour period, daily newspaper Aftonbladet reported Wednesday. Another two thefts of the devices have been reported by local newspaper Sodra Dalarnes Tidning.

The affected speed cameras are equipped with Cannon-brand digital single-lens reflex cameras (DSLR), Aftonbladet noted. Cameras of the same type have been found by Kiev troops in captured Russian “home-made drones,” the newspaper reported, citing a video recently released by the Ukrainian military. Footage appears to show wreckage of a Russian Orlan-10 (Earle-10) surveillance UAV, which is standard equipment for the country’s military, with a Ukrainian serviceman showing a bulky camera, said to have been salvaged from it.

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Swedish Security Service (Säpo) said it was aware of the alleged link between the disappearing cameras and the purported discovery of units of the same type in Russian drones, but declined to provide any further comment to local media.

“We have no opportunity to go into more detail or talk about our intelligence work,” Säpo spokesman Fredrik Hultgren-Friberg said.

All in all, up to 100 ‘speed-trap’ cameras have gone missing in recent months, according to the Swedish Transport Administration. The thieves appear to seek only the cameras themselves, leaving the system’s other electronic equipment, such as radars, untouched. The wave of thefts has already inflicted heavy damage on the road surveillance system, as replacing a single road camera costs around 250,000 krona (over $22,000).

“Now we have up to 100 cameras [missing], so that’s a lot of money,” Eva Lundberg, an official with the administration, told local media.