Finnish man sentenced to 10 years for fatal stabbing in Tampere

A 21-year-old man was sentenced to 10 years in prison Tuesday by Pirkanmaa District Court for the fatal stabbing of another man in Tampere’s Nekala district, *Yle* reports.

Ossi Viljami Ojala was convicted of killing a man in a stairwell on Riihitie on February 15, 2026. The victim, also an adult male, died shortly after being stabbed twice in the torso. Neither Ojala nor the victim lived in the building where the killing occurred.

The two had arranged to meet through Snapchat to conduct a drug deal, with Ojala intending to purchase narcotics from the victim. He brought a kitchen knife to the meeting. A violent altercation erupted between them, though the cause remains unclear. A witness reported hearing sounds of a struggle in the stairwell for about one minute.

After the stabbing, the victim walked to the basement of the building and died from his injuries. Police stated that intoxication contributed to the escalation of the incident.

Ojala, who has a prior criminal record, was convicted in 2024 of drug offenses and possession of an item capable of causing injury. He admitted to the killing, but the verdict is not yet final.