Image: Markku Ulander / Lehtikuva

Ex- Helsinki drug squad chief Jari Aanio will immediately begin serving a 13-year prison sentence, after an appeal court upheld his conviction on a slew of offences related to drug trafficking and official misconduct.

On Thursday, the Helsinki Court of Appeal rejected Aarnio's appeal and upheld the District Court's December 2016 guilty verdict and 10-year prison sentence. The outcome means that Aarnio will now begin serving that sentence in addition to the three-year custodial sentence he received for his part in the so-called 'Trevoc' case in which he used his position as a police chief to procure surveillance equipment from a private company in which he was involved.

The former head of Helsinki's anti-narcotics unit had previously been freed pending hearing of the appeal, but was taken immediately to prison on Thursday to begin his 13-year sentence. He has also been ordered to pay over 1 million euros to the state.

Court: Aarnio was the 'Pasila Man'

In its ruling, the appellate court declared that new evidence supported the conclusion of the District Court that Aarnio was the 'Pasila Man', a code name given to the user of an anonymous prepaid or burner phone who had arranged for the importation of narcotics into Finland in barrels.

The court also upheld Aarnio's previous convictions on additional charges including other aggravated drug offences, aggravated evidence tampering and dereliction of official duty. Aarnio had protested his innocence throughout the criminal proceedings, which first began in 2013.

In addition to Aarnio, former gang leader Keijo Vilhunen was also found guilty of serious drug offences, and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment in December 2016.

Story continues after photo

Image: Markku Ulander / Lehtikuva

Two women implicated in the case as being criminal accomplices of Aarnio had their sentences softened by the court.

One of the women, the so-called 'Malmi woman', was sentenced to three years' imprisonment for serious drug offences by the Court of Appeal, a slight reduction on the sentence given by the District Court.

A second woman convicted by the District Court had her sentence reduced from 7 years to 2 years.

Aarnio to pay state €1.3m

In addition to the custodial sentence, the court ordered Aarnio to pay the state 1.3 million euros and hand over a house in the city of Porvoo, located 50 kilometres east of Helsinki.

Investigators had unearthed a stash of 64,800 euros in cash hidden in a flower bed in the courtyard of the Porvoo property. The defense said in court that the cash had been planted by someone else hoping to frame Aarnio as an act of revenge. The Court of Appeal did not swallow the defence argument, however.

The Court also ruled on a cash payment of 447,000 euros to Aarnio, which the defence claimed was money received from a businessman for whom Aarnio had worked as a security expert.

The Court of Appeal did not believe this either, and found that Aarnio's exceptionally large unexplained cash assets could not have come through any legal means. The court stated in its ruling that it had not heard any evidence to contradict the District Court ruling that the money was the proceeds of drug trafficking.

Timeline of criminal proceedings against Jari Aarnio

2013

JANUARY: Prostitute "Saara" tips off the Ministry of the Interior about her sexual relationship with Aarnio and his suspicious use of money. An investigation begins into Aarnio's actions.



NOVEMBER: Aarnio is arrested in the vicinity of his apartment in Helsinki on suspicion of aggravated abuse of office and bribery.



DECEMBER: Aarnio is charged on suspicion of serious drug offenses.



2015

JUNE: The District Court of Helsinki sentences Aarnio to 20 months in prison for abuse of office and bribery, in the so-called Trevoc case.



NOVEMBER: Helsinki District Court releases Aarnio from pre-trial detention.



2016

DECEMBER: The District Court of Helsinki sentences Aarnio to 10 years in prison for six serious drug offences and 16 other crimes. Aarnio is immediately ordered to be imprisoned.



2018

JUNE: Aarnio is released from prison pending the Court of Appeal hearing. After his release, Aarnio tells Yle that it is nice to be in the centre of Helsinki.



JULY: Aarnio is arrested on suspicion of a homicide committed in 2003. According to the police, Aarnio would have been aware of the plans in advance but did nothing to prevent it. Aarnio denies the charge.



OCTOBER: The District Court of Helsinki begins the trial of a major case over alleged misconduct over the handling of police informant data, involving Aarnio and four other former and current police chiefs. The Court dismissed the charges against the four senior officers on 19 June.



2019

JUNE: The Court of Appeal in Helsinki delivers its verdict on Jari Aarnio, and he is sent to begin his 13-year prison sentence.