The police have issued a statement informing that out of three students injured in the Finland school shooting, one has tragically lost their life and the remaining two are in critical condition. The shooter identified to be a 12-year-old was apprehended on Tuesday, according to police.
A building of the Finland school was sealed off by the police officials. Due to this, parents had to resort to picking up their kids from a different building of the school that was situated metres away.
The police stated that the injured as well as the shooter were aged 12. Some time after on Tuesday, the accused was apprehended in the vicinity of Helsinki while carrying a handgun.
In the footage widely spread on the internet, two police officers can be seen kneeling beside the accused who was lying face down on the footpath. The identities of every child involved remain unknown.
The incident occurred at a school in Vantaa called Viertola School which is located in the outskirts of Helsinki. According to the municipality of the area, the school comprised 90 staff members and 800 children that ranged from the first to ninth grade.
Sari Laasila, Viertola school’s principal while talking to Reuters said, “The immediate danger is over,” but also refused to talk further on the scene. Mari Rantanen, Finland’s Interior Minister posted on the social media platform, X, “The day started in a horrifying way…I can only imagine the pain and worry that many families are experiencing at the moment. The suspected perpetrator has been caught.”
The Prime Minister of Finland, Petteri Orpo also posted on X, “My thoughts are with the victims, their loved ones and the other students and staff.”
Finland’s gun laws have been under scrutiny for a long time due to the number of school shootings in Finland.
A school shooting occurred in Jokela High School in 2007 where six students, the principal and the school nurse were murdered by a handgun-wielding Pekka-Eric Auviven who later shot himself with the same handgun.
In 2008, a shooting occurred in a vocational school located in Kauhajoki, Northwest Finland where a student, Matti Saari shot and killed nine students and one staff member and himself.
Following these incidents of Finland school shooting, in 2010 gun policies were changed while instituting an aptitude exam for all gun license acquisition. Another change was increasing the age limit for license applicants from 18 to 20.
