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Päijät-Häme District Court has handed down its verdict in one of Finland’s largest drug cases, centering on the Lahti region. There were a total of 12 defendants. The longest prison sentence, 13 years behind bars, was handed to one defendant who was convicted of five aggravated drug offences on Friday. Another member of the ring was sentenced to 12 years in prison for aggravated drug offences and firearm offences. These sentences are unusually long by Finnish judiciary standards. The other defendants were slapped with prison terms ranging between a year and a half and eight years. Charges against one defendant were dismissed. "A well-organised operation" Häme Police seized significant amounts of narcotics and pharmaceuticals, including Subutex, Xanax, Tradol and Tramal. They estimated that the gang earned some 1.4–1.8 million euros from their drug business, which they described as "a well-organised operation". The head of the investigation, Detective Inspector Toni Käyhkö from the Häme Police Department, says that the group distributed approximately 70 kilograms of amphetamines and acquired six kilograms of cocaine for distribution, of which the police seized five kilograms during a traffic stop. Authorities also found weapons including several submachine guns, pistols and a large amount of ammunition in an outdoor cache. They said that the group was active at least from February 2024 until this past January. All of the defendants are Finnish citizens, aged 20–50. Most have previous criminal histories. The court's judgments are not yet final, meaning they may still go to the Court of Appeal.
