Eastern border | A group of border crossers who came through the terrain were caught in Lappeenranta

11 Iranian men crossed the eastern border overland on Thursday. The Border Guard of Southeast Finland informs about this in a press release on Friday.

According to the border guard of Southeast Finland, the men were caught in the area between Nuijamaa and Joutseno. They applied for asylum when they were arrested.

According to the Border Guard, the preliminary investigation revealed that the group was assisted in crossing the border on the Russian side.

All men are suspected of a state border crime.

According to the Southeastern Finland Border Guard's press release, the investigation of the events started with the notification of the border commissioner of the Vyborg region.

“The border commissioner of the Vyborg region sent a notice to his colleague, that is, to the commander of our patrol, that they had an observation of such a group that was moving towards the border,” says the deputy commander of the border guard of Southeast Finland Heikki Ahtiainen for STT.

According to Ahtiainen, resources were allocated to the announced area from which the group was reached. Ahtiainen describes the arrest as being peaceful.

Crossing the land border is not easy, according to the deputy commander, but there are roads on both sides of the border in the guard area.

“According to the preliminary information of the preliminary investigation, they have also been assisted, that is, someone has guided them from there towards the border of the kingdom and to come by country roads.”

According to Ahtiainen, those who crossed the border were cold and exhausted when they met. According to him, there was about 30 centimeters of snow and ten degrees of frost in the area. According to the deputy commander, the Border Guard is still finding out how far the group had come on foot.

The Border Guard of Southeast Finland continues to investigate the case in cooperation with the Border Guard Service of the Russian Federation, the release states.

Ahtiainen describes the current situation in the border guard area of ​​Southeast Finland as calm.

On Wednesday in the morning, the Border Guard of Southeast Finland arrested four people in the Parikkala area in South Karelia. All four applied for asylum, and their border crossing is also being investigated as a state border crime.

On Wednesday, the deputy commander of the Border Guard of Southeast Finland Heikki Ahtiainen told HS that unauthorized border crossings happen every year from time to time.

“This is by no means unusual and is part of the border guard's core tasks,” says Ahtiainen.

Government announced on Thursday that the closure of the eastern border will be extended for a month until February 11. The decision on the matter was made at the general session of the Government Council on Thursday, and it can be changed or revoked if necessary.

Finland's eastern border has been closed, except for the Vainikkala border station intended for trains, since mid-December.

In Thursday's press release from the Ministry of the Interior, the extension of the closure is justified, among other things, by the fact that, according to official information, there are still people behind the eastern border who are waiting for the border to open. In addition, the ministry says that the phenomenon is related to international crime.

Thursday at the press conference on the border decision, it was asked how the border authorities are prepared for the fact that the number of illegal border crossers may increase, especially during the spring.

Department head of the Border Guard Matti Sarasmaa answered that in normal years about twenty people cross the terrain border.

“As the conditions change towards spring, the potential risk of people crossing will increase. If crossings at the land border increase, it is also punishable under Russian law. It would strengthen the perception of derived activity. We have prepared for this when the spring season arrives,” Sarasmaa said at a press conference on Thursday.