Viertola school shooting
| Viertola school shooting | |
|---|---|
 Viertola school, Jokiranta site | |
| Location | Vantaa, Finland |
| Date | 2 April 2024 |
| Target | Viertola school, Jokiranta site |
Attack type | School shooting |
| Weapons | Revolver[1] |
| Deaths | 1 |
| Injured | 2 |
| Motive | Bullying[2] |
On 2 April 2024, a shooting occurred at the Viertola school, Jokiranta site in Vantaa, Finland. The gunman, who was a 12-year-old student, shot three other 12-year-old students. One of the victims died and two were seriously injured.[3][4]
Background[edit]
Gun ownership in Finland is closely linked to hunting and target practice being a popular hobby.[5] According to the Finnish Interior Ministry, there are more than 1.5 million licensed firearms in Finland and about 430,000 licensed gun owners, equivalent to about 8% of Finland's population. Finnish law provides no limit to the number of guns that can be owned, but also requires certain ”highly dangerous”, such as semi-automatic pistols with a large magazine, or if the amount of firearms exceeds five to be "locked in such a way that the handgun cannot be easily stolen".[6][7] The minimum age to attain a gun licence is 18, while minors over 15 can also have licenses to use other people's firearms. However, the minimum age to receive a license for a revolver, which was used in the attack, is 20.[2]
Previous school shootings in 2007 and 2008 that killed people[6] led to the raising of the minimum age for gun ownership and increased background checks for prospective gun owners[5] and prompted the establishment of a "system of pre-emptive measures" allowing police to intervene if they received information on a "person's intent to stage an attack".[6] An aptitude test for all gun licence applicants was also introduced in 2010.[8]
Bullying in Finland is regarded as being widespread, with studies showing that 8.6% of children between the ages of 10–11 experience it on a weekly basis.[6]
Shooting[edit]
The police received a call about the shooting at 09:07 UTC+2,[9] which occurred in a sixth-grade classroom in Viertola school's Jokiranta campus serving grades three to six,[10] during which a 12-year-old boy wearing a mask and noise-cancelling headphones shot three of his classmates and fled the scene. Police arrived in the school at 09:17. A lockdown was implemented inside the school and in neighboring educational institutions.[6][5][11]
Immediately after the shooting, a teacher from another classroom went to the scene and convinced the suspect to leave the classroom.[12] After leaving the school on foot,[10] the suspect also threatened three students of the neighbouring Siltamäki elementary school with his weapon while they were en route to their school.[13] Later, the police found the suspect in the North Helsinki neighborhood of Siltamäki and took him into custody at 09:58.[9] Police recovered the weapon used in the attack from the suspect.[11]
Of the three victims, one was a boy and the other two were girls. The boy died immediately after being shot. One of the girls had dual citizenship of Finland and Kosovo, the other only Finnish citizenship.[14][13] One of the victims was discharged from a hospital on 11 April.[15]
Investigation[edit]
The police are investigating the incident as one murder and two attempted murders, as well as one illegal threat.[13] The legal owner of the handgun used by the shooter is being investigated for a firearms offence.[1]
The handgun used was licensed to a close relative. The police stated that the motive of the perpetrator was bullying.[16] Yle reported that the suspect had confessed to the police, and had a history of being bullied at school.[13] The suspect had transferred to the school at the start of the year.[5] Due to him being a minor, the suspect will not face criminal charges and was instead placed in the care of social services.[6] National Police Commissioner Seppo Kolehmainen said that law enforcement had not received intelligence regarding plans for the attack.[11]
Reactions[edit]
Following the shooting, calls emerged from some politicians to lower the minimum age of criminal responsibility from 15 years.[6]
The Viertola school reopened on 3 April[6] on reduced hours,[17] with crisis counselling sessions on offer.[18] On the same day, a national day of mourning was held, during which Flags of Finland were placed on half-mast and flowers and candles were laid at the site of the attack. Official discussions about the shooting were held in schools across Vantaa.[2][5] School officials later said that the students who were in the classroom where the shooting took place would be taught in other buildings of the school.[19]
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo described the shooting as "deeply upsetting" and said that mental health issues of the youth must be tackled sooner.[11] President Alexander Stubb also expressed shock at the fact of the shooting and offered condolences to the families of the victims while wishing for the recovery of them.[20] Education Minister Anna-Maja Henriksson tearfully described the shooting as a "great tragedy" and said that her thoughts were with the "12-year-old who will never come home from school again".[11] Interior Minister Mari Rantanen wrote on Twitter (X) that she "can only imagine the pain and worry that many families are experiencing at the moment."[21] Deputy Prime Minister Riikka Purra, referring to the shooting, said that "these kinds of incidents should never happen." Leader of the Left Alliance and former Education Minister Li Andersson also described the incident as a major shock to her.[20]
See also[edit]
- Crime in Finland
- Firearms regulation in Finland
- Raumanmeri school shooting
- Jokela school shooting
- Kauhajoki school shooting
- Kuopio school stabbing
References[edit]
- ^ a b "Näin Viertolan kouluampuja käyttäytyi poliisikuulustelussa". Iltalehti. 3 April 2024. Archived from the original on 3 April 2024. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
- ^ a b c "Finnish school shooting motivated by bullying - police". BBC News. 3 April 2024. Archived from the original on 3 April 2024. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
- ^ Paul Kirby (2 April 2024). "Finland shooting: Child dead and two wounded in Vantaa school shooting". bbc.com. BBC News. Archived from the original on 2 April 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
- ^ "Child dead and two wounded at school shooting in Helsinki". euronews.com. Euronews. 2 April 2024. Archived from the original on 2 April 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Tanner, Jari (3 April 2024). "A 12-year-old suspected of killing a classmate and wounding 2 in Finland told police he was bullied". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 4 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Gozzi, Laura (4 April 2024). "School shooting brings up tough questions for Finland". BBC. Archived from the original on 4 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "Unsafe storage of guns not uncommon". Yle. 4 April 2024. Archived from the original on 4 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "Deadly school shooting in Finland blamed on bullying". Al Jazeera. 3 April 2024. Archived from the original on 3 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ a b Lehto, Essi; Kauranen, Anne (2 April 2024). "Finland school shooting: 12-year-old suspect held after one child is killed, two are wounded". Reuters. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
- ^ a b "One pupil dead in Vantaa school shooting". Yle. 2 April 2024. Archived from the original on 2 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Kirby, Paul (2 April 2024). "Finland shooting: Child held after pupil aged 12 shot dead at school in Vantaa". BBC. Archived from the original on 2 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "Police: Teacher convinced school shooting suspect to leave the classroom". Yle. 9 April 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
- ^ a b c d "Poliisi: Epäilty uhkasi myös kolmea helsinkiläisen Siltamäen koulun oppilasta". Helsingin Sanomat. 3 April 2024. Archived from the original on 3 April 2024. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
- ^ Janne Niiranen (3 April 2024). "Poliisi: Kouluampumisen motiivi selvisi" [Police: motive for school shooting found] (in Finnish). Iltalehti. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
Toinen loukkaantuneista on Suomen kansalainen ja toinen Suomen ja Kosovon kaksoiskansalainen. [Translation: One of the injured is a Finnish citizen and the other a dual citizen of Finland and Kosovo.]
- ^ "One Viertola shooting victim heads home, one remains in critical condition". Yle. 11 April 2024. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
- ^ "Poliisi vahvistaa Ylen tiedot: Vantaan kouluampumisen motiivina on kiusaaminen". yle.fi (in Finnish). 3 April 2024. Archived from the original on 3 April 2024. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
- ^ "Finnish police says 'bullying' motivated school shooting". France 24. 3 April 2024. Archived from the original on 4 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "Flags fly at half-mast as Finland mourns shooting". Yle. 3 April 2024. Archived from the original on 3 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "Sixth graders not returning to school shooting classroom". Yle. 12 April 2024. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
- ^ a b "Vantaa school shooting: Tearful minister mourns "terrible event"". Yle. 2 April 2024. Archived from the original on 4 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
- ^ "Sixth-grader killed in a Finnish school shooting, police say, child suspect held". The Jerusalem Post. 2 April 2024. Archived from the original on 2 April 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.