A Western Uusimaa police officer has been killed in the line of duty in Vihti, Southern Finland.
Police received a report of gunfire on Friday evening around 9 pm, when the 67-year-old shooter opened fire on his neighbour and family member who was sitting inside a tractor. The gun used is described as an automatic weapon.
Several patrols arrived on scene and the property on Nurmijärventie was closed off and police attempted to contact the gunman for two and a half hours.
At around 11 pm shots were fired at the police from inside the property. Two policemen approaching the house sustained gunshot wounds, of which one of the officers died. The other police officer was severely injured and taken to hospital for emergency care. The police also fired their sidearms early in the siege.
Police also found the shooter dead on the property following a tactical search. The man is believed to have committed suicide.
Commissioner: Safety top concern
President Sauli Niinistö, Prime Minister Juha Sipilä and police commissioner Seppo Kolehmainen have extended their sympathies to the family of the fallen officer. Kolehmainen says the injured officer is in stable condition.
"At the moment he is pulling through and will not lose his life, but he is still in hospital with serious injuries," Kolehmainen says. "Circumstances like these are very rare, but even a single death in the line of duty is one too many. I see this as an attack on all of organised democratic society."
All in all there have been some 130 police deaths reported in the last century, the last one being a hit and run in 2007.
Kolehmainen says that police security is a constant and top concern.
"Our occupational safety protocols and equipment will be carefully reassessed following this tragedy. We make safety our number one concern, but sometimes situations arise that cannot be prevented with gear or tactics."
Updated to reflect new information following a National Bureau of Investigation press conference.