Kaskinen city manager faces criminal complaint over alleged harassment

A criminal complaint has been filed against Kaskinen city manager Markku Lumio over alleged sexually suggestive conduct, Yle reported. Two other women have submitted supervisory requests to the Licensing and Supervisory Agency concerning harassment and inappropriate treatment.

The complaint was filed on Tuesday by a woman who told Yle that it concerned Lumio’s sexually suggestive behaviour. She said she wanted authorities to determine whether the events were lawful and whether they could have criminal significance.

“It is important to me that the events are documented and investigated independently,” she said.

The Ostrobothnia Police information system did not yet show the complaint. Police said criminal complaints can take time to appear in the system.

The Licensing and Supervisory Agency said the requests were confidential under Section 10 of the Supervisory Act and that it could not disclose information about them.

Yle reported last week that three women had raised concerns about Lumio’s conduct, which they described as intrusive, including comments about their appearance, hugging and messages. Lumio has denied the allegations.

The Kaskinen city board decided this week to issue Lumio a reprimand for inappropriate conduct. The women said the decision was not sufficient. A proposal to establish a temporary committee to investigate the matter was defeated by four votes to three.

“An unbelievable decision,” one of the women told Yle.

The women also criticised the city for how it had communicated with them. They said they had received little information about the progress of the matter and had been heard only once, two weeks earlier. They said they had not been personally interviewed for an external investigation and had not received the report considered by the city board, despite being parties to the matter.

They said they learned about Lumio’s reprimand from the media rather than from the city. Jan-Anders Lundenius, chair of the city board, acknowledged that their criticism was at least partly justified. He said he had believed the information would reach the women through a city board member.

Two of the women work for the city in the same building as Lumio. Both went on sick leave this week, saying the process had been demanding and that the atmosphere had become difficult to endure.

The women said their accounts had been played down and that they had been blamed. Lumio said on Tuesday that he accepted the city board’s reprimand humbly and would work to restore a peaceful working environment.

Yle has not disclosed the women’s names because they are private individuals and two of them work for the city. Lumio’s name was published because the case is considered socially significant and he is the city’s highest-ranking official.