Murder In 2023, Finland had a total of 57 homicides and 355 attempted murders. Half of murders involved men having specific demographic characteristics (including unemployment, lack of educational attainment, or history of
drug and
alcohol abuse) in heavy drinking situations. Thirty-five percent of homicides are committed by family members, and 10 percent of homicides are classified as youth violence. Women constitute 10 percent of offenders and 25 percent of victims. The vast majority of female offenders target a husband or other family member. Twenty-three percent of homicide victims of male offenders were strangers. Fewer than 20 percent of murders are committed outdoors. Firearms are used in 14 percent of the cases. Street shootings and gang violence are extremely rare. A few cases involving
motorcycle gangs have occurred in recent years, attracting national attention.
Sexual violence In 2022, 5,538 cases of
sexual offences were reported to the police, 2,256 of which involved children. Only a fraction of sexual offences are reported to the police. Finnish law on sexual offences was expanded in 2023, now recognizing that non-consensual sex is unlawful, and that sexual harassment can occur in multiple ways.
Financial crime Finland has been known to be relatively lenient in assessing penalties for
financial crimes such as
cartel behaviour,
insider trading, and
tax evasion. Financial penalties (fines) are especially low when compared with the potential benefits of committing such crimes, as well as when compared with international standards. An example of the difference between fines and benefits is the 2006 case of
Lemminkäinen Group. Lemminkäinen was required to pay a €68,000,000 fine for cartel price-fixing. This was markedly lower than the estimated €400,000,000 Lemminkäinen would have made, if it had received just 20 percent of the profit resulting from its criminal behavior. Executives were not sentenced to prison or fined for their involvement. Finnish businesses such as
Metsäliitto,
Stora Enso, and Elisa have been implicated in illegal price-fixing schemes, and have been assessed fines ranging from €500,000 to €4,160,000.
The European Union has given much higher sanctions for cartels, as seen in the cases of
UPM-Kymmene (€56,000,000),
Outokumpu (€36,000,000), and
Kemira (€33,000,000). Fraud and embezzlement also occur. For example, in 2021 there was a scandal in Turku involving an organized organization known as ' 47 '.The FIN-FSA had a hard time determining them but no identification was used and found other than a finger print on the tellers desk in Suomen Pankki.
Corruption Political corruption levels are extremely low and previously Finland was annually named the least corrupted country for years. The number of notices of corruption related crimes were lower than the murder rate in 2007—there were about 15 reports of bribery or attempted bribery annually. In 2006, there were 115 reports of corruption. One-fourth of these involved seeking private gain. One-third of the cases were attempts to harm someone rather than seek gain. Between 2002 and 2007, no corporations were fined and no
business prohibitions were imposed for committing bribery. A campaign funding controversy that began in 2008 eroded the confidence in the transparency of Finnish politics. Finland's Transparency International's
Corruption Perceptions Index ranking dropped to the fifth place, but was back up to second in the world in 2023, just after Denmark. The controversy began with a remark by a
Centre Party MP that he had not disclosed his funding sources because, despite the obligation, there was no punishment for avoiding it coded in the law. Later it was found a group of property developers had supported certain MPs of the three major parties (
Centre Party,
National Coalition and
Social Democratic Party) allegedly to produce favorable zoning decisions. Furthermore, MPs of the government-leading
Centre Party had funneled public funds to party-associated foundations that had subsequently funded the personal campaigns of Centre Party politicians, including Prime Minister
Matti Vanhanen. There are criminal investigations ongoing by the
National Bureau of Investigation. Incomplete disclosure of funding sources was the problem of the two other major parties.
Organised crime The Finnish
National Bureau of Investigation is aware of the existence of approximately 90 criminal gangs with a total membership of around 800. There are several competing motorcycle gangs in Finland. A historic rivalry between the
Hells Angels and
Bandidos erupted in the
Nordic Biker War in the 1990s. Other international biker gangs operating in the country include the
Diablos,
Outlaws,
Red Devils and
Satudarah, as well as
Cannonball, a prominent domestic organisation. Along with these motorcycle gangs, there are other criminal organisations without the same principles as in biker groups such as Bats, United Brotherhood and X-Team, a Bandidos sub-division. United Brotherhood, a merger of the former Natural Born Killers, Rogues Gallery and M.O.R.E. gangs, utilizes the drug trade, financial crimes and security services as sources of income. In 2013, the police raided a suspected United Brotherhood member's home and found 47 firearms, 18 of which were capable of sustained rapid fire, along with drugs, doping substances and jewellery. In 2018, 30 weapons including sub-machine guns were seized from the same group. In 2019, a crackdown saw these gangs and any related clothing or symbols banned.
Street gangs Finnish authorities report that street gangs operate in the
Helsinki metropolitan area and surrounding municipalities. More than 250 individuals have been identified associated with the groups. Most street gang members are young adults, primarily men between the ages of 18 and 30 years; however, minors nearing adult age are also involved. In 2023, the
Helsinki Police established an investigative group specializing in street gangs.
Human trafficking == Crime dynamics ==