Denmark’s Christiania to close ‘Pusher Street’ after latest shooting

Denmark’s free city of Christiania planned to close down a street that is the centre of drug sales, residents said after renewed deadly violence in the street in Copenhagen.

The drug alley known as Pusher Street is to be closed down, locals decided at a community meeting late on Sunday evening.

This is according to a statement by the Christiania press group.

The move came after a man was killed in Pusher Street and four people were injured in a shooting on Saturday.

`What we feared has happened again.

“Again a young person has lost his life to gang warfare,’’ the community said.

Tourists and other bystanders were also hit by the gunfire, it said.

“This cannot go on. This should not go on. This should not destroy more lives.’’

It is the first time residents have united in calling for the closure of the drug mile.

Now, the local authorities must handle the closure, a spokeswoman for the autonomous settlement told Ritzau, the Danish news agency.

Pusher Street is the centre of the organised cannabis trade in Christiania.

Some residents blocked the street’s entrances using concrete blocks and containers in protest against criminal gangs earlier this month.

Closing the street would be a historic step as hashish has been sold relatively freely in Christiania for more than 50 years.

In recent years, however, gangs have increasingly taken over the drugs market, leading to a spike in violence.

In 2022, a 23-year-old was shot dead and a 22-year-old resident was killed the year before.

The latest victim was a prospective member of the Hells Angels, which is said to be in conflict with the outlawed Danish street gang Loyal to Familia, Danish media reported.