Man with knife approached Foreign Minister Stubb in central Helsinki in 2008
A security camera recorded an incident in which a man displayed a knife in front of then Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb on Mannerheimintie. The suspected man was a 40-year-old New Zealand citizen.
Security camera records knife incident in front of Lasipalaatsi
According to Mtvuutiset.fi, then Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb (kok.) encountered a man carrying a knife on Mannerheimintie in Helsinki on 6 November 2008 in the middle of the day. A security camera at Lasipalaatsi recorded the incident, but it was not made public at that time.
Stubb told police in a preliminary investigation in November 2008 that he had been walking alone from the direction of the Forum shopping centre towards Parliament House when he noticed the man approaching from the right.
"At first the man glared at me and put his hand in his pocket. The man took out a knife from his pocket and showed it to me. The blade of the knife was pointing towards the ground," Stubb described in questioning.
The man continued on his way towards the underground passage at Lasipalaatsi and said nothing to Stubb. However, he indicated through gestures that he had recognised Stubb – first by pointing at his own eyes with his fingers, then towards the Foreign Minister.
"When the man showed the knife, I was really frightened and backed away. I also stopped the phone call I was having while walking," Stubb said.
Stubb assessed that the man had not actually threatened him with the knife at any point, but added: "However, the man's behaviour and gestures were such that I was afraid in the situation."
Following the incident, Stubb contacted the Security Police. Helsinki Police's violent crime unit began investigating the matter as an illegal threat and possession of an item suitable for causing harm to another person.
Two days later, police arrested the suspected man, who was a 40-year-old New Zealand citizen. According to him, he had come to Finland as a tourist in June 2008. Police found a knife in the man's possession.
During questioning, the man said he had recognised Stubb from newspaper photographs and wanted to draw his attention to earlier events at the Posti Tower in Helsinki, where he felt he had been treated disrespectfully when trying to access a computer.
The man denied that the knife had been in his hand during the encounter.
"I certainly had a knife with a wooden handle in my pocket, with a blade about 10 centimetres long and a serrated edge. I had no intention of harming anyone," the man said in questioning.
About one and a half weeks after the incident, Stubb told police that he did not demand a penalty after learning information that emerged during the preliminary investigation and the suspected man's identity. No charges were brought in connection with the knife incident.
The case was revealed by MTV's Rikospaikka programme, with the latest episode released on Wednesday.
Source: Google News FI — Crime (fi)