Former Chief Inspector Jari Aarnio is suspected of aggravated drugs offences, aggravated official misconduct, aggravated fraud, aggravated acceptance of bribes, and aggravated evidence tampering, among other offences. Aarnio denies all charges.
“This is not the one of the biggest cases in Finland by virtue of the number of pages, yet it’s in a class of its own in terms of its significance. At least this is how I see it, as this involves an investigation into official conduct,” said Chief Investigator and District Prosecutor Krista Soukola.
The different branches of the preliminary investigation have produced documents amounting to over 25,000 pages. Charges are now considered for 28 suspected crimes on the part of Aarnio.
Among these, the drug offences are the most serious, carrying the heaviest punishments, according to Chief Investigator Soukola.
“Official misconduct has not been that prominent in Finland, but this will probably rise more to the fore. This is a significant matter for society,” Soukola noted.
22 suspects besides Aarnio
Out of the 22 other suspects involved in the investigation, six are policemen, in addition to Aarnio.
In one branch of suspected drug importing, Aarnio is suspected of organizing narcotics importing and distribution between the Netherlands and Finland. Three other Helsinki policemen are suspected of misconduct in this branch of the investigation.
The whole preliminary investigation was launched by suspicion of misconduct relating to prostitution. Aarnio is suspected of inappropriate conduct between 2004 and 2011 in this area, as well as failing to intervene in crimes, and of ambiguities in the use of funds between himself and a prostitute.
The preliminary investigation regarding Helsinki police information sources and the so-called Putin leak continues. An investigation into official misconduct related to Kuopio is also still ongoing.
