Unresolved 20-year-old Finnish homicide case likely to hit statute of limitations with no suspects in sight
The suspected homicide of Pekka Tuukkanen, who disappeared 20 years ago, remains unsolved. The 41-year-old pensioner vanished without a trace on a highway between Perho and Kinnula in Central Finland in the early morning of July 26, 2004. As the disappearance has been investigated as a homicide, the statute of limitations will expire this July, marking 20 years since the suspected crime. It is very likely that the case will not proceed to prosecution as a homicide, as there are currently no suspects.
Tuukkanen disappeared unexpectedly after spending the evening with a group of men in a house in Hiilingin village, Kinnula on July 25, 2004. He decided to walk home to Perho, a distance of over 40 kilometers. The mostly gravel-covered highway from Kinnula to Perho is largely desolate.
The last sighting of Tuukkanen was by a truck driver who recognized the man walking near the border of Perho and Kinnula around 5:30 am. By that time, Tuukkanen had been walking for over nine hours. Based on these sightings, police have estimated that his likely disappearance point was a seven-kilometer stretch near the border of the two provinces.
Police started to suspect foul play in Tuukkanen’s case in 2006, when the investigation was transferred to the Central Criminal Police. While the police also consider an accident possible, they reported that there are no aspects of the investigation that would cause them to suspect murder, a crime that, unlike homicide, does not have a statute of limitations.
During the investigation, two burned cars in the area around the time of Tuukkanen’s disappearance caught the interest of the police. However, it was later revealed that these cars were likely burned before Tuukkanen’s disappearance and are not related to the case. Despite extensive searches, Tuukkanen was never found.