Court sentences two men over Lahti and Nastola shootings

The Päijät-Häme District Court has sentenced two men over shootings in residential areas of Lahti and Nastola in August 2024, Yle reported. One man received six months in prison, while the other was given a suspended sentence of six months and 15 days and ordered to pay a fine.

The man born in 1989 was convicted of two firearms offences and careless handling of a firearm. The man born in 1959 was convicted of one firearms offence and careless handling.

The first shooting took place in Mukkula, Lahti, on 16 August 2024. The older man went to the courtyard of the apartment building on Timonkatu where the younger man lived, demanded that he come outside and fired a shot into the air to reinforce his demand. He then hid the weapon outdoors under leaves.

The younger man also fired several shots into the air from an open window of his first-floor apartment towards the courtyard. At least two other people were present there on the weekday evening, meaning the shooting could have endangered their lives or health.

On 20 August, the younger man drove to Nastola with a gun and fired from the vehicle window towards the older man’s home street, which is near an elementary school. A bystander found the pistol on the ground. Police seized and destroyed both weapons.

The prosecutor had initially also charged both men with unlawful threats, and the younger man with aggravated violation of domestic peace. The older man had allegedly threatened by telephone to shoot the younger man if he did not leave Lahti. The younger man had broadcast a Facebook livestream while driving in a bulletproof vest, asking for the older man’s address, before driving to his street and firing towards the man’s house. He later returned to the property, walked around the yard wearing the vest and told the residents to come outside. They were not at home at the time.

The prosecutor withdrew those charges during the hearing after the men reached a settlement. The men otherwise admitted their guilt and had no claims against each other. The court issued its ruling in June, but it is not yet legally final.