Weapons sent to Ukraine may have ended up in criminal gangs, Finland says

Routes from Ukraine to Finland to smuggle arms have been established, said a Finnish detective

Weapons sent to Ukraine may have found their way back to Finland and have ended up in the hands of the criminal underground, including motorcycle gangs, according to the Finnish National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).

Routes from Ukraine to Finland to smuggle arms have been established, Detective Superintendent Christer Ahlgren of NBI said during a YLE interview on Sunday. However, Ahlgren did not disclose what kind of weapons might now be in the wrong hands.

So far, Finland has sent nine shipments of military material to Ukraine, the last delivery taking place in the second week of October. The content of all shipments has not been revealed due to Finland’s own security concerns. What is known is that the aid has included at least 2,500 rifles and an amount of 150,000 cartridges.

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The news of arms smuggling comes as no surprise. On 22 July, Europol released a statement saying that ”the proliferation of firearms and explosives in Ukraine could lead to an increase in weapons and munitions trafficked into the EU via established smuggling routes or online platforms.”

That prophecy has come true. According to NBI’s Christer Ahlgren, weapons sent to Ukraine have also been found in Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands.

source euractiv.com