A court in Finland found three men guilty of committing crimes with terrorist intent after producing semi-automatic guns using a 3D printer.
The men had earlier subscribed to neo-Nazi ideology and are believed to be staunch anti-immigrants. The court noted that they intended to stage attacks against immigrants, critical infrastructure, and their perceived political opponents.
The prime suspect, 29-year-old Viljam Lauri Antero Nyman, was awarded more than three years in jail and charged with aggravated firearms offences. Nyman was also convicted of a narcotics charge at Tuesday’s hearing at Paijat-Hame district court.
His two partners were sentenced to one year and nine months in prison and received a suspended sentence of seven months, respectively, for their involvement in terrorism-related crimes, specifically the manufacture of firearms and training to use them.
Finland’s first terror conviction linked to far-right
This marked Finland’s first terrorism conviction linked to far-right ideology, as reported by the public broadcaster YLE. These crimes occurred between 2021 and 2023.
The defendants believed that using violence against perceived enemies, including immigrants, ethnic and religious minorities, and anti-fascists, was justified in their quest to protect the supposed superiority of the white population, according to the prosecutors.
Additionally, they planned attacks on civilian infrastructure, such as electricity grids and railways.
A police investigation determined that their activities did not progress to the level of preparing for a concrete act of terrorism.
In the same case, the fourth defendant, a 66-year-old man, received a one-year and two-month prison sentence for firearm crimes that were ‘not’ committed with terrorist intent.
Suspects had criminal record
All four men convicted had criminal records under their names. Last summer in Helsinki, one of the suspects attempted to disrupt a storytime event for children hosted by a drag queen at Oodi Central Library.
Watch: Gravitas: Finland mulls banning Nazi symbol of hate as racism scandal rocks new govt
Another suspect, born in 1996, was earlier convicted of drunk driving and other drug-related offences.
A third man, born in 2001, has links to Nazis from Oulu. The fourth suspect is also believed to have strong ties with far-right and neo-Nazi circles.
(With inputs from agencies)
