A Norwegian teenager has been found guilty of conspiracy to murder after travelling to the United Kingdom to carry out a contract killing allegedly organised by the Swedish criminal group known as the Foxtrot Network.
The conviction followed a retrial at the Old Bailey in London, where Johannes Natland, 19, was unanimously found guilty by a jury after previously admitting firearms offences but denying involvement in the murder conspiracy.
Prosecutors said Natland travelled from Norway to England in March 2025 after being recruited through encrypted messaging by members of the Foxtrot Network, a Swedish organised crime group that British authorities say has links to Iran. He was arrested at a hotel in Huddersfield before the planned attack could be carried out.
Police recovered two loaded handguns and 19 rounds of live ammunition from his hotel room. Investigators said he had been guided to hidden cash, weapons and transport through messages sent on the encrypted messaging application Signal.
During the trial, Natland claimed he never intended to carry out the killing and instead planned to shoot himself in the foot to escape the assignment. Prosecutors rejected that account, arguing that digital evidence, CCTV footage and witness testimony demonstrated he had agreed to commit the murder in exchange for payment.
The court heard that the teenager who recruited Natland, known online as “Generalen”, had already been convicted in Norway over his role in organising multiple violent crimes linked to the Foxtrot Network, including murder plots in Sweden and the United Kingdom.
British authorities said the intended victim in England was never identified because Norwegian police arrested Generalen before the operation could be completed. Information recovered from his phone prompted an urgent investigation by UK Counter Terrorism Policing, leading officers to locate and arrest Natland before any attack took place.
The Crown Prosecution Service said the case demonstrated how organised crime groups increasingly recruit young people across borders to carry out contract killings. Prosecutors said swift cooperation between Norwegian and British authorities prevented the planned murder and ensured no one was harmed.
Natland remains in custody and is due to be sentenced in October.
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