100 kg of Cannabis Discovered in School Backpacks in Finland
Finnish customs officers have uncovered 100 kilograms of cannabis hidden in children’s backpacks, which belonged to a criminal group operating in the Finnish capital, Helsinki.
Cannabis Smuggled from Spain
Customs officials, working together with police from Finland, Spain, the Netherlands, and Germany, exposed the activities of a gang involved in distributing cannabis in Helsinki and Jyväskylä. During a special operation, law enforcement searched a warehouse in the Finnish capital and found 400 backpacks containing 90 kg of cannabis and 10 kg of hashish. In addition, authorities seized €45,000 in cash (about 4.6 million rubles) and two firearms.
Details of the Investigation
Senior customs officer Janne Kallio shared the results of the investigation: “We tracked down members of the smuggling group. According to our data, the criminals organized eight covert drug shipments from Spain to Finland since last November. They smuggled at least 280 kg of cannabis and hashish, with a black market value reaching €4 million (407 million rubles).”
Backpacks Filled with Cannabis and Hashish
Customs officials estimated the value of the confiscated cannabis relatively low. According to Kallio, the price of 1 gram of cannabis is 1,454 rubles. Meanwhile, research firm CFAH found that the average price of 1 gram of cannabis in Helsinki is $19.70 (1,830 rubles), making the Finnish capital the ninth most expensive city in the world for cannabis. Moscow surpassed Helsinki, ranking seventh, with an average price of $20 (1,844 rubles) per gram.
Finland to Consider Cannabis Legalization Proposal
Recreational cannabis remains illegal in Finland, which allows criminals to profit from cannabis smuggling. However, the situation may change thanks to local activists who managed to collect 50,000 signatures this year on a petition to lift the ban on cannabis. As a result, the proposal to legalize the plant will be considered in parliament.
In 2019, supporters of cannabis legalization also gathered enough support from voters, but three years later, the Legal Affairs Committee rejected their initiative. Officials stated that the current prohibition policy is “relatively successful,” so the second attempt by activists to legalize cannabis may also fail.
Koel Thomas, a legalization advocate, explained the project’s goals: “We want to spark public discussion [on the issue of legalizing cannabis]. We saw in the US, Canada, and Germany how the ban on cannabis was lifted after heated social debates. In Finland, there hasn’t been any real debate on this topic yet.”