Judgments | The court convicted the previously acquitted killer of Laajasalo's murder

Helsinki the Court of Appeal condemned the person born in 1988 by Victor Verner Weckman ten years and six months in prison for manslaughter. The District Court of Helsinki had previously dismissed the charge against Weckman.

A person born in 1988 who was previously convicted of a crime Jimmy Michael Lagus the sentence of ten years and six months was upheld in the Court of Appeal.

The two killed a 35-year-old man in his own home in Helsinki's Laajasalo in October 2021.

Foul play was revealed when the police arrived at the victim's apartment on Sunday morning. The neighbor had heard cries for help from the apartment and reported them to the victim's ex-spouse, who reported the situation to the emergency center.

A deceased victim was found in the apartment, who had been stabbed at least 27 times with a kitchen knife and possibly also with another bladed weapon.

In court, the men denied having committed the crime or even being at the victim's apartment. Both men had memory lapses caused by substance abuse.

Helsinki the district court dismissed the charges against Weckman, even though his DNA was found on the paring knife found at the crime scene, which again belonged to Lagus. According to the district court, there was only one perpetrator, and the evidence pointed to Lagus.

Both the prosecutor, the victim's family and Lagus appealed the sentence to the Court of Appeal.

The Court of Appeal stated that, for example, from the size of the kitchen that served as a crime scene, it could not be concluded that there was only one perpetrator. According to the court, there was sufficient evidence of Weckman's presence in the victim's home, and the DNA identification alone was quite strong evidence.

The convicts were ordered to pay compensation of 7,500 and 5,000 euros to the victim's father and sister.