Police to improve probe into human trafficking offences

The National Police Board is analysing the decision of the Deputy Chancellor of Justice concerning the investigation of human trafficking offences and will assess the improvement measures required in it as well as actions taken by the police in recent years, said the National Police Board in a press release on Friday.

“Some of the measures, such as the establishment of a national team to focus on the investigation of human trafficking offences, are so recent that their effect has yet to be reflected in the Deputy Chancellor of Justice’s assessment,” said Chief Superintendent of the National Police Board Teemu Saukoniemi.

Saukoniemi pointed out that the decision was made against a background of a heavy workload in criminal investigations, which is reflected by prolonged pre-trial investigations also in other serious offences.

”The police are developing overall criminal investigation in a crosscurrent of the resources available on the one hand and their legal obligations on the other. These include, for example, increased formalities and an obligation to conduct a pre-trial investigation in all offences, irrespective of their seriousness. The police do their best but the equation is not always an easy one,” Saukoniemi said.

According to Chief Superintendent Måns Enqvist, various actions by the police have contributed to improving combating human trafficking offences.

“We’ve fortunately made progress in the measures compared to the case file assessed by the Deputy Chancellor of Justice. Among other things, all police officers must undergo mandatory training in combating human trafficking. The national human trafficking investigation team we have set up together with the networks supporting it and the National Bureau of Investigation’s anti-trafficking task force have already delivered results in a short time. Already yesterday, the National Police Commissioner requested a plan for the new measures required by the Chancellor of Justice’s decision. The plan will be submitted to him at the end of January 2022,” said Chief Superintendent Enqvist.

Pointing out various measures, Enqvist said that the police aim for police anti-human trafficking measures to be carried out using the same practice and quality criteria at all police departments in Finland.