Swedish rapper Hamko was fatally shot Friday afternoon while standing outside a restaurant in Puerto Banus, Spain, in what Spanish officials described as a targeted daylight attack that left tourists scrambling for safety and police swiftly arresting a suspect.
The 25-year-old Swedish rapper was smoking and speaking on his phone around 2:30 p.m. when a gunman stepped out from behind a black van and opened fire at close range.
Surveillance footage captured the shooter tossing his own cigarette before pulling a firearm from behind his back and unleashing several rounds as Hamko tried to duck between tables on the terrace.
A witness added that they heard “six or seven shots” from what sounded like “a very powerful weapon.” Diners and pedestrians nearby dropped to the ground or fled in panic as bullets flew.
Emergency responders transported Hamko to Costa del Sol Hospital in Marbella, but he died shortly after arriving.
Authorities later apprehended a 38-year-old man, also Swedish and described by local press as being of Afghan descent, near the scene. Police have not released further details about the suspect or motive.
The killing has reignited scrutiny of Sweden’s ongoing battle with organized crime, especially in light of Karimi’s past ties to Einar, Sweden’s most prominent rapper, who was murdered in Stockholm in October 2021.
Hamko and Einar were reportedly childhood friends who grew up in the same Stockholm neighborhood, though they were no longer close at the time of Einar’s death.
Einar, whose real name was Nils Grönberg, was 19 when he was shot and killed in what police also labeled an execution. He had been expected to testify in a criminal case involving his 2020 kidnapping, which implicated rival rapper Yasin Mahamoud.
Yasin was later convicted for helping lure Einar to a studio where he was attacked.
Spanish authorities have not confirmed whether Hamko’s murder is connected to any gang activity, but the Costa del Sol has increasingly become a hotspot for international criminal networks, including those with ties to Sweden.
A 38-year-old man has been arrested and the investigation is ongoing.