Finnish border guard investigates illegal crossing from Finland to Russia in Lieksa

The North Karelia Border Guard is investigating a suspected illegal border crossing from Finland into Russia near Lieksa, after the individual involved first contacted emergency services themselves.

According to a statement by the border authority, the case initially appeared to be a missing person search. The individual had called the emergency response centre before crossing the border.

After assessing the situation, authorities determined the person had likely crossed the state border into Russia. A border crossing trail was confirmed with the help of a tracking dog.

“We continue to map the person’s movements on the Finnish side and focus on investigating the illegal border crossing,” said Captain Matti Kettunen, lead investigator for the North Karelia Border Guard.

A pre-trial investigation into a suspected violation of state border regulations has been launched. The North Karelia border representative has also been in contact with their Russian counterpart in the Suojärvi region regarding the incident.