The Helsinki District Court has ordered the freezing of a total of EUR 20,000 of property belonging to the registered Elonvaalijat company, which organizes the operations of the Elokapina climate change movement.
Police last week filed a lawsuit with the court to seize the group’s assets because they had reason to suspect a violation of fundraising laws in two different situations, the first between April 26, 2021 and June 18, 2021, and the second on September 15.
Vice-Chairman of the Survivor Lauri Kangassalo has previously told Yle that the climate group denies having committed the crime.
According to the police, however, Elonvaalijat’s fundraising activities have violated section 6 of the Finnish Fundraising Act, according to which fundraising may not be used "finance activities which clearly endanger public order or security or are illegal."
Police allege that the group has raised money to fund the Elokapina demonstrations, which have led to the arrest of activists on suspicion of crimes such as causing a public obstruction, disobedience to the police and gross violations of the peace.
Police also suspect that the Survivors Association has exceeded the maximum number of fundraising notices required before public collections can be legally made.
Director of Investigation, Detective Superintendent Juha-Matti Suominen, has previously refused to say which of the association ‘s representatives are under investigation.
Confiscation of property is a standard procedure in the investigation of suspected crimes, as it is intended to ensure that, if a crime is proven, all proceeds of crime can be confiscated.
If the Survivors are found guilty in court of violating the Fundraising Act, the punishment would be a fine.
The Helsinki Police Department has already admitted that they have not accurately assessed the security flow caused by last week’s climate demonstration outside the government palace, and that there were additional errors in the event communication.
The police government has launched an internal investigation into the events surrounding the protest.
Elokapina is an activist group that has organized demonstrations to pressure the government to declare a climate emergency in Finland. It has supported the streets of Helsinki during several demonstrations to draw attention to its demands for action to combat climate change.
Source: The Nordic Page