The District Court labeled him the "Pasima Man," a reference to the Helsinki neighborhood where Aarnio used telephones to facilitate the operation. About 791 kilograms of hash came into the country in barrels.
According to Helsingin Sanomat, the court released a press briefing saying, "Before being caught, Aarnio has during the years 2012–2013 been shown to have obstructed in a number of ways the investigation of the importing of the hash barrels. He has also been shown to have tried in other ways to prevent himself and other people involved in the operation from being caught,” adding, “The District Court concludes that Aarnio has flagrantly abused his position in Helsinki’s drug police and therefore is guilty of a number of aggravated and lesser abuses of public office."
— Tuomas Tammisto (@tutamAW) December 29, 2016
Aarnio’s 22 charges included aggravated fraud, aggravated acceptance of a bribe, aggravated abuse of public office and trying to frame an innocent person to take the fall for leading the drug ring, alongside a number of other charges. He was also charged with colluding with known underworld figure Keijo Vilhunen to intimidate a suspect in the case.
Throughout the three-year trial, the 59-year-old has maintained his innocence, claiming that his activity was related to his position in drug law enforcement, insisting that his activities were legal.
The Helsinki Court of Appeal in September sentenced the 30-year law enforcement veteran to three years in jail in an unrelated case concerning the purchase of equipment for Helsinki’s drug police.
The District Court ordered that he be incarcerated immediately, and Aarnio’s legal team has said the former unit chief will appeal the charges.
Transparency International ranks Finland as one of the most corrupt countries in Europe, second only to Denmark.
