Finnish police correct Swedish report: Karf family may not be in Sweden

Finnish police have denied claims by Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet that the missing Karf family is believed to be hiding in Sweden, stating there is no confirmed information on their whereabouts.

“The family could be in Sweden, Finland, or another country—nothing has been ruled out,” Mikael Appel, communications chief for the Ostrobothnia police department, told Yle on Monday. He clarified that while Sweden remains a possibility due to geographic proximity and the family’s Swedish-language skills, police have not singled it out as their likely location.

Appel noted that coastal Ostrobothnia has strong ties to Sweden, with many Finnish Swedes maintaining close contacts across the Gulf of Bothnia. However, he stressed that authorities have no knowledge of the family’s connections to Sweden or other countries.

The last confirmed sighting of the eight children and their parents—Tommy and Karoliina Karf—was in May 2024, when they fled a child welfare unit in Nykarleby. A ninth child was born during their disappearance. Interpol has issued a global missing persons alert for the children and an international arrest warrant for the parents.

Finnish media investigations suggest the family’s flight stemmed from a prolonged dispute over homeschooling, with the parents seeking to avoid municipal school placement and potential custody loss.