Thousands were celebrating May Day’s Eve in Helsinki center when a man drove into the crowd.
HELSINKI— A man, 33, drove a black Mercedes into a crowd on Northern Esplanade at 19:00 on Saturday, in an area where tens of thousands of people were celebrating May Day’s Eve on Saturday. The sculpture of Havis Amanda had just been crowned with a student’s cap.
Three people, including the suspect, were injured in the incident. At least eight cars suffered damage. Several people were barely able to avoid being hit by the car.
So far, the police are not suspecting the man of terrorism. Apparently, the man was an employee of the government and according to some sources had been a candidate in local elections. According to eyewitnesses, after the car crashed into another car just before Stockmann, he resisted the arrest and was calling the name of Satan and God.
“No stop! Stop in the name of God,” the man is heard shouting during the arrest in a clip shot by an eyewitness.
“Get away from me, Satan!” he uttered.
The man was also heard shouting Amen.
According to eyewitnesses, one of the cars hit by the suspect flew toward a cafeteria where people were sitting on a terrace.
The police tried to stop the suspect already at Pohjoisranta, just a few kilometers away, but the man did not follow orders. The police did not chase him.
It is unclear how the suspect was able to pass the various roadblocks leading to the Northern Esplanade.
At this writing, the victims have been released from the hospital.
The man is suspected of various crimes, including aggravated drunken driving.
