Reporting a crime

A crime report can be reported to any police department. As a general rule, the police are obliged to receive all reports. However, the police will not investigate crimes related to the person concerned if the victim has stated that he does not demand the perpetrator be punished.

You can also file a crime report electronically at poliisi.fi. The police can also file some crime reports. For example, police home alarm situations where intimate partner violence has come to light. If the police don't mention it, it's worth checking with the police station afterwards to ensure that the police have definitely filed a criminal report. According to the law, the police have an obligation to report violence in a close relationship.

The police can instruct the victim to apply for a restraining order or, order a temporary restraining order, which the court will investigate the case in more detail and confirm the ban as necessary. In order to start the investigation, the police need as detailed a description as possible of the event and the people who participated in it.

The sooner you report a crime, the easier it is for the police to investigate it and the more likely it will be solved. Violence can also be reported to the police later. Note, however, that investigations become more difficult over time and that crimes have statutes of limitations.

If the police have reason to suspect that a crime has occurred, a preliminary investigation will be started. The duration of the investigation depends on the nature of the crime. For more: Preliminary investigation

It is important for the police to inquire about previous violence and to understand the victim's situation, including mental and other violence, their subordinate position and their fears. This comprehensive information is important, because if the details of the case are limited and the act seems minor or isolated, the police in charge of the preliminary investigation may not make it the most urgent.

The crime report is short, after which the parties are interrogated in the preliminary investigation. The information recorded in the preliminary investigation protocol can also be read by the suspect of the crime. Some factors such as the victim's fear are also important to bring up. If, for example, the victim reveals his fears in connection with the divorce and wants to keep them confidential from the perpetrator, the matter should be discussed separately with the criminal police.

The police receives a report of a crime and conducts a preliminary investigation when there is reason to suspect that a crime has occurred. The criminal process aims to determine whether a crime has occurred and who committed it.

The criminal process consists of the following steps:

• Pretrial investigation
• Prosecution
• Litigation
• Execution of punishment

When investigating a crime, the police ask if the victim demands punishment for the offender.

If the victim wants to withdraw their demands for penalties or compensation, they should find out the possibilities for later prosecution decisions.

A victim of violence cannot receive court-ordered compensation from the State Treasury if a criminal complaint has not been filed and a claim for compensation has not been submitted.

You should keep the evidence related to the violence (evidence) also in case you later report it to the police:

• Keep (or give it to a trusted person to keep) documents, receipts, recordings and contacts with helping parties related to the crime and its consequences.
• If the perpetrator targets you with digital violence, you should keep the messages, take screenshots of them, keep a record of threatening calls, etc.
• If there were eyewitnesses or other witnesses to the acts of violence, it is worth writing down their role in relation to the crime or its consequences (e.g. if you went to a friend's house to escape the violence, told a friend about the violence, etc.).
• It is important that you go to health care whenever you have injuries and psychological consequences, even if the injuries do not require medical attention.
• It would be important that you tell the healthcare person honestly who caused the injury and when. You may need a record of the violence as important evidence later, if you decide to file a criminal complaint.