Finland Times

A Finnish court has been pressing criminal charges against four Finnish divers for stealing antiquities from a shipwreck, which is protected by the Finnish Antiquities Act, local media reported on Wednesday.

The forthcoming trial, which will take place in the Eastern Uusimaa District Court, is likely to be the first ever wreck theft case in Finland, said Finnish daily Helsingin Sanomat on Wednesday.

The accused divers were suspected to have stolen objects from a sunken wreck in 2011 in the sea near Porvoo, southern city of Finland. However, the court declined to reveal what are those objects taken from the wreck.

The vessel located 60 meters under the sea was discovered by the Finnish Maritime Administration in 2004. It is supposed to be built in 1700s.

According to the Finnish antiquities law, all shipwrecks belong to the state of Finland, if their owners are not found and they have been lying under water for over a hundred years.

The Finnish National Board of Antiquities made a total of eight requests to police for criminal investigations into the theft cases targeting the same wreck from 2011 to 2013, said Helsingin Sanomat, but no charges were filed in the period.

Mia Tuominen, Detective Chief Inspector at Eastern Uusimaa Police, said that the theft investigations were complicated by the fact that the cases occurred on the seabed and the circle of wreck divers in Finland is small.

"Such crimes cause the police more than gray hair," Tuominen was quoted as saying.