Finnish Air Force’s commander suspected of service offence

Major General Sampo Eskelinen is suspected of neglecting his duty to open a pre-trial investigation into suspected offences by a former commander of the Karelia Air Command. (Credit: Martti Kainulainen – Lehtikuva)

MAJOR GENERAL Sampo Eskelinen, the commander of the Finnish Air Force, will be charged with either service offence or negligent service offence, according to the Office of the Prosecutor General.

The charge is related to a case against a former commander of the Karelia Air Command, who is suspected of abuse of superior position, service offence and defamation over events that took place during a voluntary military refresher organised in Inari, Lapland, in September 2017.

The ex-commander is believed to have violated the military code of conduct and treated his subordinates inappropriately during the exercise. Eskelinen, in turn, is believed to have neglected his duty to ensure a pre-trial investigation into the suspected offences is carried out without undue delay.

Eskelinen has largely denied the criminal allegations, whereas the ex-commander has denied being guilty of any criminal wrongdoing, according to a press release issued by the Office of the Prosecutor General on Tuesday.

With the exception of the suspected defamation, the offences have been investigated by the legal division of the Defence Command.

 

Source : Helsinki Times