Finland school shooting incident wounded three children

A shooting incident took place at Viertola school in Vantaa, a suburb of Helsinki in Finland which wounded three children. According to authorities, the wounded children were 12-years-old.

However, the suspect was also a 12-year-old whom authorities have arrested. A police spokesperson told Reuters that they had shifted the victims to the hospital. However, they have not provided further details on this incident.

Several injured in shooting at a school in the Finnish city of Vantaa, police say, and a suspect is in custody https://t.co/q8kLzT8X0c
— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) April 2, 2024

According to the local municipality, incident place Viertola School has approximately 800 students from first to ninth grade and a staff of 90 people.

Meanwhile, Viertola School Principal, Sari Lassila said the immediate danger is over. Principal Sari declined to comment further on this incident while talking to the media.

However, Interior Minister Mari Rantanen wrote on Twitter X regarding the Finland school shooting incident. Mari posted the day began in a horrific manner. There was a shooting at the Viertola School in Vantaa.

Mari also stated she could only imagine how much grief and stress many families are going through right now. The accused culprit has been captured. Previous school shootings in Finland have brought the country’s weapons laws under intense observation.

A teenager named Pekka-Eric Auvinen used a handgun to kill six students, the school nurse, the principal, and himself in 2007. This tragic incident happened at Jokela High School outside Helsinki, Finland.

Click here to read updates on Europe shaken after a mass shooting in Brussels

Another student, Matti Saari opened fire at a vocational school in Kauhajoki, northwest England a year later in 2008. He killed nine students and one male staff member before turning the gun on himself.

Following these tragic shooting incidents, Finland restricted its gun laws in 2010 by requiring all people to pass an ability test to get a gun license. It also increased the age limit for gun licenses from 18 to 20 years.

Finland is a 5.6 million-populous country with 1.5 million licensed weapons and over 430,000 license holders. Hunting and target shooting are popular sports in Finland.