Police field commander charged in death of 22-year-old Vantaa resident Nea – verdict in October
An East Uusimaa police field commander is charged with breach of official duty and manslaughter in connection with the death of 22-year-old Nea. The verdict will be delivered on 6 October.
Field commander failed to perform duties – Nea found dead
Google News FI — Crime reported on a trial in which a former field commander of East Uusimaa police is being prosecuted for breach of official duty and manslaughter. The case is connected to the death of 22-year-old Nea in October 2023 in Vantaa.
Events began on 27 October 2023 at 21.50, when Nea's friend called the emergency centre concerned about the young woman's welfare. Nea appeared to be suicidal. The emergency centre dispatched the matter to police with B-priority classification.
At 22.03, the charged field commander recorded the task as completed as follows: "Task completed on scene: no action taken. – – – Probably a hundred similar reports. Caller is not responding to provide further information. Perhaps shelve task." No one actually visited Nea's home. Her father found his daughter dead later.
Defendant denies charges, prosecutor seeks conviction
The now 61-year-old man vehemently denies the charges. In court, he stated emphatically that the case is merely an attempt to get "one man's head on a pike". According to him, the emergency centre acted wrongly by failing to dispatch an ambulance.
"I acted as field commander. I saw the task. I notified the emergency centre on the Virve radio that it should send an ambulance to the scene, this matter does not belong to the police. So I reacted to the situation very quickly," the police officer said in court.
He also claims that the emergency centre is attempting to cover up its own responsibility, as there are no records in the systems of the ambulance request made over the radio telephone.
According to specialist prosecutor Jonna Ryynänen's view, the victim could have been saved if the field commander had acted appropriately. The prosecutor seeks approximately two to three months of conditional imprisonment for the retired police officer.
Superior officer: conduct contrary to guidelines and law
A superintendent heard as a witness in court completely rejected the defendant's view. According to him, the field commander acted contrary to both guidelines and the law.
"Although Nea certainly needed emergency care assistance, the task belonged to the police. The police cannot themselves decide not to accept a task from the emergency centre – let alone transfer it to another authority," the superintendent stated.
He also noted that the defendant knew of Nea's previous suicide attempts and had himself previously visited the woman's home on similar tasks. According to the superintendent, this should have even raised the task's priority level.
The East Uusimaa police area receives almost 2,000 emergency calls related to suicidality annually. The superintendent, who acted as the defendant's superior at the time of the incident and trained his subordinates in dealing with suicidal people, wished to conclude his testimony by asking Nea's parents for forgiveness.
"I am truly sorry that this has happened, and during my time as sector manager. This should not have happened."
Two other police officers heard as witnesses also expressed their condolences.
Compensation claims and verdict date
Nea's parents are demanding that the Finnish state or the police officer pay them a total of 19,000 euros in compensation for their suffering. The East Uusimaa District Court will deliver its verdict in the matter on 6 October.
The defendant has prior legal involvement concerning breach of official duty. In 2021, the district court considered a charge that he had assaulted a man by strangulation – the charge was dismissed due to lack of evidence. In 2025, he was convicted of two breaches of official duty when he accessed a certain woman's information in the police system on two separate occasions.
The man appeared in the Poliisit television series at one time. Iltalehti has received permission from Nea's parents to publish her name and image.
Source: Google News FI — Crime (fi)