Finnish court reduces axe murder sentence but calls crime exceptionally brutal

The Vaasa Court of Appeal has reduced the prison sentence of a man convicted of killing another man with an axe, though it described the crime as “exceptionally brutal.” The court lowered the penalty from 12 years to 11 years and six months to align with legal precedent.

Garo Akaub Jlitakryan was originally sentenced in June 2025 by the South Ostrobothnia District Court for the July 2024 murder, which took place in the victim’s home in Seinäjoki. According to the ruling, Jlitakryan struck the victim—who was lying in bed—six times in the head with an axe. The victim died from his injuries, and the convicted man fled in the victim’s car before being arrested in eastern Finland.

The Court of Appeal dismissed Jlitakryan’s request to overturn the murder conviction, instead upholding the lower court’s verdict except for the sentence length. The defendant had argued for charges of aggravated assault and manslaughter or, at most, homicide, while also seeking reduced compensation payments and a new psychiatric evaluation.

Jlitakryan was previously ordered to pay €7,000 in damages to the victim’s family. The ruling is not yet legally binding.