Pirkanmaa District Court in Tampere on Friday sentenced a man and a woman on Friday to unconditional prison terms for aggravated human trafficking. They were convicted of depriving a young woman of her freedom for more than four years and keeping her in inhumane conditions.
The victim was repeatedly subjugated and assaulted during this period. She was forced to stop using birth control and to give birth to four children by her male captor. Three were born during her period of captivity. Those born while she was a captive were registered as the children of the female perpetrator.
He received a prison term of three years and 10 months, while the female captor was sentenced to two years and eight months.
Several leading legal experts, including professor emeritus Terttu Utriainen, have described the sentences as very lenient. Many observers have expressed bafflement that the prison terms are shorter than the period of the victim’s confinement.
Appeal decision this week
District prosecutor Leena Koivuniemi agrees, and told Yle she is considering whether to appeal the case. She is to announce her decision by Friday.
The prosecutor had sought a prison term of at least six years for the male perpetrator and 3-4 years for his female accomplice.
Most details of the case have been declared confidential.
The tabloid Ilta-Sanomat reports on Monday evening that during the period of captivity, between 2010 and 2014, the male captor was a fugitive from justice. He was convicted of defrauding an elderly Kainuu man of money in 2006. According to the paper, the middle-aged main defendant is the father of the female captor.