|
Fri, 23 May, 2014 01:42:51 AM FTimes-STT Report, May 23
The cabinet on Thursday approved a bill with a provision for protecting a witness by giving a new identity and moving to a new location.
The bill will be placed before the parliament for enactment after collecting opinions on it, sources at the Ministry of Interior said.
Apart from the witness, protection may be accorded to others as well, such as the victim or a family member of the witness.
It may also be possible to protect the witness outside the country. However, this must be first agreed with the authorities of the country concerned.
Need for protection will be assessed case by case and the operations will be evaluated accordingly.
The authorities will have to present first and foremost, especially during the early stages, that the witness is able to lead a full and normal life, according to Elina Immonen from the Ministry of Interior.
The protection programme will only be started, if other measures are deemed not sufficient. These measures include restraining orders, contact concealment and home security systems.
The police estimate only a few cases of witness protection will arise in a year. A typical witness protection programme would be linked to organised crime and the programme could be a way of escaping the criminal sphere of influence.
The programme is already in use in almost all the countries in the EU. In Finland, it is expected that the law will come into force next year.
The National Bureau of Investigation will be in charge of the programme and the annual cost is estimated to be around 700,000 euros.
Later, it will be considered whether more funds should be allocated to the programme or if it should be sliced from the existing budget.
More News
|
|
Finland Times
| Sunday, 28 April, 2024 |
|
Copyright © 2024 All rights reserved
|
||||
