Authorities investigating last week's deadly school shooting in Vantaa said on Monday that the 12-year-old suspect was only inside the school building for a few minutes, after which a teacher talked the boy into leaving the classroom.
The violent incident, which took place last Tuesday, claimed the life of one 12-year old boy and seriously injured two girls of the same age.
There was one teacher in the classroom when the shots were fired, then another teacher arrived and convinced the suspected shooter to leave the classroom, police explained on Monday in a press release.
Authorities said the teaching staff acted in an exemplary and responsible manner during the ordeal.
The teacher made the suspected shooter leave the building, said investigation chief Marko Särkkä, adding that the outcome of her actions was very positive, given the situation.
Police officers arrived at the scene only a few minutes after the incident was called in and soon after managed to track down the underage suspect in northern Helsinki.
The investigation into the shooting continued over the weekend, work that included technical examinations and a number of interviews. Police said investigators had interviewed the suspect again and were "more or less aware of the course of events".
"Interviews conducted over the weekend revealed that after the incident, the suspect selected his route randomly. According to current information, the suspect is not believed to have threatened anyone with a gun after leaving Viertola school," Särkkä said in a release.
All Points North asks how Finland will respond to the school shooting tragedy. Listen to the episode via this embedded player, on Yle Areena, via Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
Gun taken from relative without permission
In further developments concerning the investigation, police confirmed that the suspect had obtained the handgun used in the deadly shooting without permission.
"We have already released information that the gun used by the suspect belongs to a close relative. This close relative is not a family member, and the gun has been stored in an appropriate manner. The suspect took possession of the gun without permission," Särkkä said in the release.
Police are now looking into how the minor was able to access the secured weapon.
Both of the girls who were wounded in the shooting remained in hospital on Monday, according to police. One of them was still in a critical condition, while investigators were able to question the second victim.
Police also requested that the investigation be left to the proper authorities and for people to respect the privacy of those involved in the incident, as well as their relatives.
"Since the Viertola shooting incident, several schools in the operational area of the Eastern-Uusimaa Police Department have received various kinds of threats which are currently being investigated by the police. We take all kinds of threats very seriously. Threats should not be made even as a joke," Särkkä said.
Police said the next press update on the investigation will take place on Thursday.
