Estonia is investigating damage to two telecommunication cables in the framework of criminal proceedings
In the evening of 31 December, the Office of the Prosecutor General initiated criminal proceedings to investigate damage to two telecommunication cables linking Estonia and Finland. In cooperation with the Finnish police, the Office is to create a joint investigation team and investigators of the National Criminal Police will be sent to Finland.
In the early morning of 31 December, the connection of two telecommunication cables linking Estonia and Finland was interrupted. Based on information available today, the damage site is located in Estonia’s exclusive economic zone ca 60 km from the coast near Finland’s exclusive economic zone. At the time when the damage occurred, cargo ship Fitburg was traversing the telecommunications cables and travelling towards Finland’s exclusive economic zone. Finnish law enforcement authorities initiated criminal proceedings in relation to Elisa’s cable and detained the cargo ship in their exclusive economic zone.
Prosecutor General Astrid Asi said it was vital to conduct the necessary procedural operations with the vessel and its crew as soon as possible. “Identifying the exact damage site and the vessel inevitably took time. By the time the vessel had been identified and the Finnish border guards reached it, the vessel was in Finland’s exclusive economic zone. This is why Finland detained the vessel in its exclusive economic zone and conducted the initial procedural operations, since this was the fastest possible way to collect evidence. After Finland’s initial operations, we also initiated criminal proceedings in Estonia in order to actively collect further evidence and analyse these,” said Asi.
The Finnish police identified the suspected vessel as Fitburg, which sails under the flag of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. When the vessel was detained, its anchor chain was still in the water. There were 14 crew members on board, including citizens of Russia, Georgia, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan. The Finnish police collected initial evidence but the investigation and cooperation to identify relevant circumstances is underway. At this time, the crew is being interviewed.
Leho Laur, the Head of the National Criminal Police, said that the Estonian police has been actively exchanging information with their Finnish colleagues since yesterday morning. “In cooperation with the Prosecutor’s Office, we are making preparations for creating a JIT, a joint investigation team with the Finnish police. As a part of this, we want to send investigators of the National Criminal Police to the scene of event in Finland to collect evidence and exchange information important for the criminal proceedings of both countries. This kind of cooperation is not new for us since creating a JIT and having the investigators of several countries work side by side is standard practice in international investigations,” said Laur.
In Estonia, criminal proceedings were initiated on the basis of a penal section concerning interference with or damaging vital public utilities systems. The criminal proceedings are conducted by the National Criminal Police and directed by the Office of the Prosecutor General.