Europe News

Finnish police complete probe into school shooting

Jun 11, 2009, 12:50 GMT

Helsinki - A 22-year-old man who killed 10 people at a trade school in western Finland had planned the September 2008 shooting for several years, Finnish police said Thursday. Matti Saari shot eight female students, one male student and a male teacher at the school in Kauhajoki before turning the gun on himself. Police have found a note in his home where Saari said he had planned the shootings since 2002. In a phone call to a friend after the shootings and before he turned the gun on himself, he said he had planned it for two years. In the note Saari said he hated people and society. He also recorded a video of himself at a shooting range and outside the school. Police concluded he had acted alone and could not find any direct links between Saari and the assailaint in a previous Finnish school shooting. Saari's psychological profile suggested he had suicidal traits who had previously suffered from bullying but there were no signs he had been bullied at the trade school. During the rampage Saari fired at least 157 shots, and also lit several fires in the school. About a third of the 2,300-page report that included interviews with over 150 people was to be made public. The case is closed following the death of Saari. Finnish authorities have introduced measures to tighten gun laws after the school shootings.

Europe News

Finnish police complete probe into school shooting

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