Command of Helsinki police drugs unit split in two

Aarnio heads drugs squad, but Paakkala makes tactical decisions

Raimo Paakkala

Jari Aarnio

print this

Jari Aarnio, the head of the drugs unit of the Helsinki police, continues to serve as chief of the drug squad. However, some of the tasks have been transferred to Raimo Paakkala, who filled in for Aarnio during his recent sick leave.
     "Jari Aarnio has not been pushed aside in his task. Instead he has returned to carry out his job. However, certain internal arrangements have been made to avoid the impression of inadequacies in supervision", says chief of staff Teuvo Saikkonen.
     According to Saikkonen, Aarnio continues to be responsible for the management of the unit. However, Paakkala has been given power over various tactical decisions that emerge in connection with investigations.
     According to Saikkonen, Aarnio has been excluded from decisions on the types of questions in which the head of the drug unit, and about 20 other officers are facing a criminal investigation.
     
Confusion over the command structure of the drug police emerged on Thursday when Helsinki Police Commander Jukka Riikonen and Jari Aarnio gave differing versions of Aarnio's present job description.
     Riikonen said that Raimo Paakkala is currently the head of the unit, while Aarnio said that he was still in charge.
     Saikkonen says that Aarnio and Riikonen have discussed the matter and have reach an understanding on the situation.
     "They discussed the matter on today, Thursday. I don't know how Aarnio feels about the situation, but I doubt that anyone would find such a situation very pleasant."
     
In December, Aarnio and about 20 officers on the drugs squad went on sick leave for work exhaustion after hearing that their unit was the target of a criminal investigation.
     Now seven officers have been named as suspects in a case of malfeasance in an investigation headed by state prosecutor Ari-Pekka Koivisto. The officers are suspected of having too close a working relationship with informers in the criminal underworld, and of ignoring crimes committed by those who give valuable tipoffs to investigators.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Drug squad members suspect "informers" were from national police unit (19.12.2007)
  Interior Ministry and police administration deny drug squad claims of persecution (11.12.2007)
  Drug police sick-leaves encumber investigations of serious drug crimes (10.12.2007)
  Crime suspect Jari Aarnio claims he is still head of Helsinki drug police (10.1.2008)

Helsingin Sanomat