Finland investigates suspected war crime in Ukraine

Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation has opened a preliminary investigation into a suspected war crime committed in Ukraine, the police unit confirmed to Yle.

The investigation began this year. The bureau has not disclosed when the suspected crime took place, who may have been targeted or whether anyone is suspected of committing it. It also did not say how the case came to its attention. The victim, a witness or a suspect could be in Finland, it said.

Since Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Finnish police have recorded dozens of reports of possible war crimes in the country. The National Bureau of Investigation now has 75 reports concerning possible war crimes or aggravated war crimes in Ukraine. These are preliminary assessments and do not yet involve a suspected crime.

The investigation launched this year is the only current investigation into a suspected war crime committed in Ukraine, the bureau said. War crime investigations are very rare in Finland.

In August, the Helsinki Court of Appeal issued a verdict in the only cases involving alleged war crimes in Ukraine to have reached court in Finland so far. Russian national Voislav Torden was sentenced to 12 and a half years in prison for acts committed in 2014.

War crimes can include the intentional killing, torture or inhumane treatment of civilians or prisoners of war. Under Finnish law, a war crime carries a minimum prison sentence of one year and can be punished with life imprisonment.