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Finnish police have uncovered an extensive crime operation involving a Swedish-based gang, which included an attempted contract killing in Helsinki, a bomb hidden in Vantaa, and a record-breaking drug seizure.
The investigation, led by the Helsinki Police Department and the National Bureau of Investigation (KRP), centres on a group of 11 suspects, including at least four Swedish nationals.
Authorities believe the group orchestrated violent and drug-related crimes across southern Finland.
The case began on 25 August 2024, when multiple gunshots were fired into a residential apartment in the Lassila district of Helsinki. The resident, who was inside the apartment at the time, was not injured. According to Detective Inspector Masi Puolakka, the shooting was a targeted attack related to a drug dispute, not a random act.
The assailants, reportedly recruited in Sweden and aided by individuals living in Finland, were provided accommodation and transportation. Communication was handled through encrypted messaging apps. Police arrested the first suspects the same evening in Espoo, with more taken into custody the next day in central Helsinki. Three Swedish suspects remain in custody.
Authorities say the apartment residents were not directly involved in drug trafficking but were specifically targeted due to connections with individuals indebted to the gang. Police are investigating the shooting as attempted murder and weapons offences.
Less than three weeks later, on 11 September, police found a hidden backpack in a wooded area in Rajakylä, Vantaa. Inside was a thermos flask bomb containing more than three kilograms of explosives. Two people — a 30-year-old woman and a man in his 20s — are suspected of constructing the device. The materials were
Source: www.helsinkitimes.fi
