Police in Finland have reportedly searched the home of a journalist who published a report about a Finnish military program that tracked Russian troop movements.
The investigative report, published by the Finnish daily Helsingin Sanomat on Saturday, was accused of disclosing state secrets and has resulted in a criminal probe. It detailed the country’s defence intelligence agency’s efforts to track Russian troop movements near St. Petersburg and was based on previously leaked documents.
Police officers searched the house of one of the authors of the report, Laura Halminen, without a warrant on Sunday, Helsingin Sanomat reported. Police seized her laptop and other electronic devices in their four-hour search.
“I believe these events are very disconcerting when it comes to the operational preconditions of the press and the protection of sources [in Finland],” Kaius Niemi, the editor of Helsingin Sanomat, was cited as saying by the Helsinki Times on Monday.
Before the police search, Halminen had destroyed her computer hard drive with a hammer to avoid compromising her sources, the RBC business portal reported.
