Suspect of Finland knife attack investigated

A SUSPECT detained and accused of stabbing two people to death in a knife attack in Finland is being investigated over murder with possible terrorist intent.

It appears that the man – an 18-year-old Moroccan asylumseeker – targeted women during his rampage in two public squares, said Crista Granroth of the National Bureau of Investigation.

“We think the attacker was going after women,” she said, adding that one man was wounded with a knife slash when he tried to stand between the attacker and a woman.

The Security Intelligence Service said the deadly stabbing attack was “a likely terror act”.

Pekka Hiltunen said the agency was investigating the suspect’s connections to the Islamic State group, since IS “has previously encouraged this kind of behaviour”.

The suspect had yet to be questioned, while four others – also Moroccans living in Turku who know him – were detained on sus- picion of involvement.

The dead from the apparent indiscriminate attack on Friday are Finnish citizens, while the eight wounded include one Italian, one Briton and one Swede.

Police said the suspect, whose name has not been released, was subdued with a shot in the thigh and that he is in hospital under guard.

Investigators say he came to Finland in early 2016 seeking asylum.

Police said they were working with colleagues from law enforcement abroad. The NBI said others involved in the investigation were the Security Intelligence Service, police in Turku and the European Union’s police agency Europol.

Europol was said to be helping to check whether there are connections to the events in Barcelona.

It was not known if the attack was linked to the decision in June by the Finnish Security Intelligence Service to raise its threat assessment.

At the time, it cited the country’s