Pirkanmaa District Court has sentenced 24-year-old Ville-Valtteri Johannes Väänänen to a nine-and-a-half year prison term after finding him guilty of carrying out a mass stabbing that injured four people in Tampere last year.
He was convicted of three counts of attempted murder and one count of aggravated assault. The crime was carried out in early July 2025. Four adults, three women and one man were stabbed near the Ratina shopping mall in central Tampere.
The court found the defendant was of sound mind when he carried out the violent attack. It said Väänänen's criminal past should be taken into account and must be considered to be extremely dangerous to the life, health and liberty of others.
The court handed the man a combined sentence, which is meant for extremely dangerous inmates. Those serving a combined sentence cannot be released on parole or conditional release.
The district court dismissed one charge of unlawful threatening.
The prosecutor had demanded that the man receive an unconditional combined sentence of at least eight years.
The verdict is not yet legally binding, as both the prosecutor and defence can still appeal the decision.
Local prosecutor Pekka Hätönen said he was satisfied with the verdict.
"It's harsh but fair, especially when one considers what offences he was convicted of," he said.
The defendant's lawyer Kaarle Gummerus said he was unable to confirm whether his client plans to appeal the case. Gummerus said he will first examine the verdict more closely and discuss the matter with the defendant.
Gummerus noted that he was not surprised by the severity of the sentence.
During the investigation of the attack, the man told police he had fantasised about mass killings. However, he denied having planned the stabbings he carried out.
According to the court, the suspect used deliberate consideration in the stabbings. This is indicated by the suspect's previous talk of killing and the acquisition of the weapon.
The district court also found that the stabbing, which took place in a public place, was likely to arouse fear in others besides the victims.
The suspect was ordered to undergo a mental state examination and an exceptional risk assessment before the verdict was issued. The man has remained in custody during the examinations.
