A Russian citizen travelling under the name Voislav Torden was identified and apprehended by Finnish Border Guard personnel with the help of facial recognition technology.
The 36-year-old man has since been detained into custody by a Finnish court on suspicion of committing terrorism offences in Ukraine.
According to Yle's sources, the suspect was stopped by border security staff as part of a routine check as he was preparing to board a flight to the French city of Nice.
Torden presented a Russian passport and a residence permit issued by Finland, but border officials became suspicious and further investigation uncovered evidence that Torden had previously used the name Jan Petrovskiy.
Officials then learned that Petrovskiy was banned from entering Norway and the Czech Republic, a restriciton that which applied across the entire Schengen area.
With the use of facial recognition software, the border guard was able to confirm that Torden and Petrovskiy were the same person.
Suspected terrorist leader
Finnish media reports have identified Torden as a leader of the Rusich group, which was designated a neo-Nazi paramilitary organisation by the Council of Europe in 2022.
Once Torden's use of the Petrovskiy alias was confirmed, the Border Guard began investigating his violation of the ban from entering the Schengen area. This led to authorities asking the Finnish Immigration Service Migri to revoke Torden's residence permit. It also recommended that he be deported from Finland.
Border Guard officials justified this decision on the basis that Torden had attempted to mislead Finnish authorities by assuming a false identity and using documents that allowed him to obtain a Finnish residence permit, despite the existing entry bans against him.
It remains unclear whether the documents used by Torden were forged or if he had been issued new documents under a different name.
Suspects wants to return to Russia
In a decision dated 25 July, Helsinki District Court noted that Torden would have been willing to depart for Russia immediately if his identity documents were returned to him.
He conveyed his desire to leave the detention facility and return to his home to St. Petersburg as quickly as possible, saying he would be willing to participate in any legal proceedings from there.
In a reconsideration of his detention case on Friday, Torden stated his intention to apply for asylum in Finland.
Officials respond
Jussi Tanner of the Finnish Foreign Ministry told Yle on Sunday that some details circulating in the Finnish media about the case are false, but he was unwilling to confirm what was true and what was not.
Commercial broadcaster MTV reported that Torden arrived in Finland under a false name and managed to secure a residence permit based on his partner's studies.
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) on Sunday refuted criticism against Finnish border security, saying, "we have one of the most efficient border guard agencies in the world, so in that regard, there's no need to worry".
"The Finnish authorities know that individual risk assessments need to be constantly updated," he said.
Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen (NCP) meanwhile said people in Finland need not worry about Wagner members crossing into the country, adding that the authorities were aware of the possibility of these mercenaries arriving in Finland prior to the case publicised last week.
"Even before this [case], the authorities have been well aware of such a possibility. Of course, we are monitoring how the situation with these forces develops from here on," she added.