A prosecutor in Åland has called for the district court to sentence a local peace demonstrator to 10 income-linked day fines for breaching firearms law after he displayed a bent, antique rifle outside the Russian consulate in Mariehamn.
The defendant did not have legal representation at the hearing, but did receive the support of around ten friends who also join him at the consulate in daily protests of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, a conflict nearing its second anniversary.
News outlet Nya Åland reported that the defendant testified that the gun was more than a century old and had been used in the Winter and Continuation wars, and purchased about 60 years ago at an auction.
The prosecutor told the court that the defendant possessed and transported a rifle without a permit. In response, the defendant noted that since the vintage rifle's barrel had been partially cut off and a metal pipe tied into a knot had been welded in its place, it rendered the weapon unfireable.
However, according to police, the defendant still needed a permit for the firearm because it could become functional again if the welded pipe were to be cut off.
The defendant admitted that he acted carelessly and did not object to the fines, according to Ålands Radio, which first reported the story.
The defendant expressed a hope that the rifle would not be forfeited to the state because he also wants the police to help him fully deactivate the weapon so that it can continue being displayed at the protesters' site by the consulate.
A number of people have called for the closure of the Russian consulate since the invasion of Ukraine began.
However President Sauli Niinistö announced in the autumn that Finland would not take action concerning the diplomatic mission.
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