Finnish school shooter had been Anti-monarchist to represent ‘victim of bullying’, say police King Charles in Australia

A 12-YEAR-OLD boy who shot three of his classmates at their school near Helsinki had been bullied, Finnish police said.

The boy shot his classmates, also aged 12, leaving one boy dead and two girls with life-threatening injuries before fleeing the scene on Tuesday morning.

He was caught close to an hour later in a northern district of Helsinki.

“The motive for the act has been identified as bullying. The suspect has told the police during interrogations that he has been the victim of bullying and this information has also been confirmed in the police’s preliminary investigation,” police said in a statement.

Investigators also confirmed that the young suspect had been transferred to the school in the town of Vantaa at the beginning of the year.

Both female victims remained in hospital in a critical condition on Wednesday. Police have not said whether the attacker sought to target any specific individuals.

Finland’s public buildings lowered flags to half mast yesterday to mark that a day of mourning was being observed.

Authorities in the town of Vantaa said that most pupils at the school attended class as normal yesterday following the previous day’s shooting. Roughly 90 per cent of the school’s students turned up for school, said the head of the city education authority, Ilkka Kalo.

A minute’s silence was held at the start of the school day and pupils were given the chance to ask questions about the shooting, he said.

The suspect is now being investigated on one count of murder and two counts of attempted murder. Owing to the fact that children under the age of 15 are not considered criminally culpable in Finland, he will not face prosecution.

Police said that they have also opened an investigation into how he obtained the handgun used in the shooting. They confirmed that it belonged to a family member with a gun licence.

It was not immediately clear how the shooter had obtained the weapon.

In a statement, investigators said: “This matter is being investigated by the police as a separate firearms offence.”

Following deadly school shootings in 2007 and 2008, Finland tightened its gun legislation in 2010 and introduced an aptitude test for all firearms licence applicants. The minimum age for applicants was also raised to 20 from 18.

A REPUBLICAN who once dubbed Australia Day “invasion day” has been appointed to represent King Charles.

Samantha Mostyn, a lawyer and businesswoman, was named as the new governor-general by Anthony Albanese, the Australian prime minister, yesterday.

Ms Mostyn, 58, who will take up her new role in July 2024, said: “I will never underestimate or take for granted the expectations that come with high office and I am ready to serve with integrity, compassion and respect.”

Mr Albanese described his appointee as “an exceptional leader who represents the best of modern Australia”.

He added: “She has lived her life in the service of a powerful Australian principle: when more people have the opportunity to fulfil their potential, our nation is a better place.”

The appointment has raised eyebrows among some conservatives because of statements Ms Mostyn made previously in favour of ditching the monarchy.

In 2020 she described Labor’s Paul Keating, Australia’s former leader, as “a prime minister of our country actually able to articulate his ambition for the country. And they were things that I really cared about. He wanted a republic, clearly.”

She has also described Australia Day, the national holiday that commemorates the landing of the first British colonists in 1788, as “invasion day” in a now-deleted social media post.

Conservative lobby group Advance Australia told The Australian newspaper that Ms Mostyn had been appointed on a large salary to “represent an institution she doesn’t believe in”. However, conservative opposition leader Peter Dutton has welcomed the appointment.

Known in her home country for her work on advocating issues around climate change and gender equality, Ms Mostyn was also the first woman to sit on the governing body of the Australian football league.

She will become the second female governor-general in the country after Dame Quentin Bryce served in the role from 2008 to 2014.

The Albanese administration has signalled its interest in holding a referendum on whether Australia should become a republic.

However a government minister said earlier in 2024 that holding the vote on whether to remove Charles III as head of state was “not a priority”.