A documentary series has managed to do what even the best crime dramas could not: it tore apart an entire country's perception of itself. The Black Swan, a four-part Danish investigation, became a national sensation in 2024, exposing a shocking symbiosis between the criminal underworld and the country's white-collar elite.
The Informant at the Heart of the Storm
At the centre of this real-life thriller is Amira Smajic, a lawyer who once represented Denmark's most notorious criminal gangs. Film-maker Mads Brügger describes her as his 'black swan' – an unpredictable and extraordinary source of a kind a journalist encounters only once in a lifetime. Smajic, who arrived in Denmark as a child refugee from the Bosnian war, had built a career working with mobsters, earning the nickname 'ice queen' for her ruthless methods.
In a dramatic turn, she decided to become an informant for the state-owned broadcaster TV 2, rigging her Copenhagen office with hidden microphones and cameras. For six months, she documented illicit activities, gathering a huge cache of evidence while putting herself in significant danger. She saw this as her only escape from a life of crime that she compared to a drug addiction.
A Web of Crime and Complicity
The series goes beyond simply exposing gangland figures. Its most profound revelation is how these criminals operate hand-in-hand with seemingly respectable businesspeople and lawyers. The investigation uncovers a co-dependent relationship where one section of society feeds the other, facilitating money laundering and fraud.
One of the most menacing characters featured is Fasar Abrar Raja, a former member of the Bandidos biker club with convictions for assault, firearms possession, and drug smuggling. His bravado eventually turns into open threats, and by the third episode, he vows to 'crush [Smajic] with my bare hands'.
In a different but equally damning segment, businessman Martin Malm, described as a cliché of the Danish upper class, openly boasts that obfuscating his business affairs is like finding a cheat code for a video game.
A Nation Rocked to its Core
The impact of The Black Swan was immediate and seismic. When it aired in 2024, half of the entire Danish population tuned in. The fallout was tangible, sparking a string of police investigations and leading to a tightening of laws around money laundering and gang activity.
Brügger, known for his undercover work in North Korea in The Red Chapel, stated that making the series revealed a Denmark that was 'grim and dark', shattering the country's almost prelapsarian self-image. The series culminates in a heart-stopping finale where the team fears their entire operation has been compromised, offering a masterclass in handling a story spinning out of control.
As Smajic finds herself in increasingly precarious situations, she remarks, 'It's like being in a bad movie.' For viewers, this 'bad movie' resulted in a nail-biting series that underscores the profound real-world impact television journalism can still achieve. The Black Swan is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
