Chapter 15 - Offences against the administration of justice

Section 1 - False statement in court

(1) If,

(1) a witness or an expert witness in court,
(2) a party to a matter in court, when heard under affirmation, or
(3) another person in court, under oath or affirmation,
makes a false statement in the matter or without lawful cause conceals a pertinent circumstance, that person shall be sentenced for a false statement in court to imprisonment for at most three years.

(2) What is provided above in subsection 1 applies also when a person is heard in the main hearing by video conference, telephone or another technical means of communication referred to in chapter 17, section 34a of the Code of Judicial Procedure, without he or she being present in person. (361/2003)

Section 2 - False statement in official proceedings

(1) If

(1) a person under oath or affirmation in official proceedings comparable to a trial,
(2) a person other than the suspect, when being questioned in person in criminal investigations, or
(3) a person other than one referred to in chapter 6, section 2, subsection 2 of the Police Act (872/2011) , when being questioned in a police inquiry or in comparable official proceedings, (815/2011)
makes a false statement in the matter or without lawful cause conceals a pertinent circumstance, said person shall be sentenced for a false statement in official proceedings to a fine or to imprisonment for at most two years.

Section 3 - Aggravated false statement in court

If, in a false statement referred to in section 1,

(1) serious danger arises of the court sentencing an innocent person to imprisonment or to another severe penalty, or a person to a significantly more severe penalty than what would otherwise be the case, or that the court is very likely otherwise to make a wrong decision causing very considerable damage to a party,
(2) the falsehood or the concealment pertains to an especially important circumstance, or
(3) the offence is committed in an especially methodical manner,
and the offence is aggravated also when assessed as a whole, the offender shall be sentenced for an aggravated false statement in court to imprisonment for at least four months and at most six years.

Section 4 - Negligent false statement

A person who

(1) as a witness or expert witness in court, or
(2) under a party’s affirmation, oath or affirmation in court or in official proceedings comparable to a trial,
negligently makes a false statement or conceals a pertinent circumstance, shall be sentenced for a negligent false statement to a fine or to imprisonment for at most six months.

Section 5 - Attempted incitement to a false statement

A person who attempts to incite another person to commit an offence referred to in sections 1 - 3 shall be sentenced for attempted incitement to a false statement to a fine or to imprisonment for at most one year.

Section 6 - False denunciation

A person who makes a false statement to an authority carrying out a criminal investigation, another authority or a court, thereby causing danger that the denounced person is wrongly arrested, remanded or subjected to other coercive measures, or that charge are wrongly brought against him or her, or that he or she is wrongly sentenced to a punishment or other penal sanction, shall be sentenced for a false denunciation to a fine or to imprisonment for at most three years.

Section 7 - Falsification of evidence

(1) A person, who for the purpose of having an innocent person sentenced or otherwise to cause damage to another person, conceals, destroys, defaces, alters or otherwise falsifies an object, document or other item necessary as evidence before a court or in criminal investigations and that he knows to be of significance in the matter, shall be sentenced for falsification of evidence to a fine or to imprisonment for at most two years.

(2) A sentence for falsification of evidence shall be imposed also on a person who, for a purpose referred to in subsection 1, submits a piece of evidence that he or she knows to be false or falsified to be used as evidence in court or in criminal investigations, or himself or herself uses it in a misleading manner.

Section 8 - Aggravated falsification of evidence

If, in the falsification of evidence,

(1) serious danger arises of an innocent person being sentenced to imprisonment or to another severe penal sanction,
(2) the offence pertains to particularly important evidence, or
(3) the offence is committed in a particularly methodical manner,
and the offence is aggravated also when assessed as a whole, the offender shall be sentenced for aggravated falsification of evidence to imprisonment for at least four months and at most six years.

Section 9 - Threatening a person to be heard in the administration of justice

A person who unlawfully

(1) by violence or threats prevents or attempts to prevent another person from making a statement as a witness, expert witness, other person to be heard or a party in a trial, criminal investigation, police inquiry or other comparable official proceedings, or influences or attempts to influence the contents of the statement, or
(2) employs violence or threats violence against another person or a person related to him or her in the manner referred to in section 10, subsection
2 because of a statement made by him or her in the hearing referred to above,
shall be sentenced, unless a more severe penalty for the act has been provided elsewhere in the law, for threatening a person to be heard in the administration of justice to a fine or to imprisonment for at most three years.

Section 10 - Failure to report a serious offence

(1) A person who knows of imminent genocide, preparation of genocide, crime against humanity, aggravated crime against humanity, war crime, aggravated war crime, torture, breach of the prohibition of chemical weapons, breach of the prohibition of biological weapons, compromising of the sovereignty of Finland, treason, aggravated treason, espionage, aggravated espionage, high treason, aggravated high treason, rape, aggravated rape, aggravated sexual abuse of a child, murder, manslaughter, killing, aggravated assault, robbery, aggravated robbery, trafficking in persons, aggravated trafficking in persons, hostage taking, aggravated criminal mischief, aggravated endangerment of health, nuclear device offence, hijacking, an offence committed with terrorist intent referred to in chapter 34a, section 1, subsection 1(3), aggravated impairment of the environment or aggravated narcotics offence, and fails to report it to the authorities or the endangered person when there still is time to prevent the offence, shall be sentenced, if the offence or a punishable attempt thereof is committed, for a failure to report a serious offence to a fine or to imprisonment for at most six months. (990/2009)

(2) However, a person shall not be sentenced for a failure to report a serious offence, if, in order to prevent the offence, he or she would have had to denounce a spouse, a sibling, a direct ascendant or descendant, a person living in the same household or a person who is close owing to another comparable personal relationship.

Section 11 - Harbouring an offender

(1) A person who, after becoming aware of an offence, by furthering the escape of the offender or by destroying evidence prevents or attempts to prevent the offender from being brought to justice, shall be sentenced for harbouring an offender to a fine or to imprisonment for at most one year.

(2) The provision in subsection 1 does not apply to a participant in the offence nor to a person whose relationship with the offender is referred to in section 10, subsection 2, nor to offences for which the most severe penalty provided does not exceed imprisonment for six months.

Section 12 - False statement abroad

For purposes of application of the provisions on false statement, “court” also refers to the International Court of Justice established by the Charter of the United Nations and other tribunals set up by that organisation, a court of Iceland, Norway, a member state of the European Communities and the European Union, as well as a court in another foreign country, when extending legal assistance to a Finnish court.

Section 12(a) – Offences against administration of justice by the International Criminal Court

In the application of the provisions on false statement, false denunciation, falsification of evidence and threatening a person to be heard in the administration of justice, “court” refers also to the International Criminal Court, and “criminal investigation” refers also to an investigation referred to in the Rome Charter of the International Criminal Court.

Section 13 - Restrictive provision

The provisions on false statement do not apply if

(1) the person making the statement corrects it or reveals the concealed circumstance before the hearing or questioning is concluded, or
(2) it is impossible to keep to the truth without the danger that the person heard himself or herself becoming liable for an offence or a comparable unlawful act.

Chapter 16 - Offences against the public authorities

Section 1 - Violent resistance to a public official

(1) A person who

(1) employs or threatens violence so as to force a public official to perform or to refrain from performing an official act involving the exercise of public authority,
(2) otherwise employs or threatens violence against the public official because of the official act being carried out, or
(3) employs violence against a public official or a related person, as referred to in chapter 15, section 10, subsection 2, in revenge for the official act,
shall be sentenced for violent resistance to a public official to imprisonment for at least four months and at most four years.

(2) Also a person who behaves in the manner referred to in subsection 1 towards a person who, at the request or with the consent of a public official, assists the public official in an official duty involving the exercise of public authority shall be sentenced for violent resistance to a public official. (604/2002)

Section 2 - Resistance to a public official

If the violent resistance to a public official, taking into account the minor significance of the violence or threat or the other circumstances of the offence, is to be deemed committed under mitigating circumstances, when assessed as a whole, the offender shall be sentenced for resistance to a public official to a fine or to imprisonment for at most six months.

Section 3 - Obstruction of a public official

(1) A person who, without employing or threatening violence, prevents or attempts to prevent an official act, as referred to in section 1, or make it more difficult to carry out, shall be sentenced for obstruction of a public official to a fine.

(2) Also a person who behaves in the manner referred to in subsection 1 towards a person who, at the request or with the consent of a public official, assists the public official in an official duty involving the exercise of public authority shall be sentenced for obstruction of a public official. (604/2002)

Chapter 16 - Offences against the public authorities

Section 13 – Giving of bribes

(1) A person who promises, offers or gives to a public official in exchange for his or her actions in service a gift or other benefit intended for him or her or for another, that influences or is intended to influence or is conducive to influencing the actions in service of the public official, shall be sentenced for the giving of bribes to a fine or to imprisonment for at most two years.

(2) Also a person who, in exchange for the actions in service of a public official, promises, offers or gives the gift or benefit referred to in subsection 1 shall be sentenced for bribery.

Section 14 - Aggravated giving of bribes

If in the giving of bribes

(1) the gift or benefit is intended to make the person act in service contrary to his or her duties with the result of considerable benefit to the briber or to another person or of considerable loss or detriment to another person, or
(2) the value of the gift or benefit is considerable
and the bribery is aggravated also when assessed as whole, the offender shall be sentenced for aggravated giving of bribes to imprisonment for at least four months and at most four years.

Chapter 40 - Offences in office

Section 1 – Acceptance of a bribe

(1) If a public official, for his or her actions while in service, for himself or herself or for another,

(1) asks for a gift or other unlawful benefit or otherwise takes an initiative in order to receive such a benefit,
(2) accepts a gift or other benefit which influences, which is intended to influence or which is conducive to influencing him or her in said actions, or
(3) agrees to the gift or other benefit referred to in paragraph (2) or to a promise or offer thereof,
he or she shall be sentenced for acceptance of a bribe to a fine or to imprisonment for at most two years.

(2) A public official shall be sentenced for acceptance of a bribe also if for his or her actions while in service he or she agrees to the giving of the gift or other benefit referred to in subsection 1(2) to another or to a promise or offer thereof.

(3) A public official may also be sentenced to dismissal if the offence demonstrates that he or she is manifestly unfit for his or her duties.

Section 2 - Aggravated acceptance of a bribe

If in the acceptance of a bribe

(1) the public official stipulates the bribe as a condition for his or her actions or it is his or her intention, because of the gift or benefit, to act in a manner contrary to his or her duties to the considerable benefit of the party giving the gift or of another, or to the considerable loss or detriment of another, or
(2) the gift or benefit is of significant value
and the acceptance of a bribe is aggravated also when assessed as a whole, the public official shall be sentenced for aggravated acceptance of a bribe to imprisonment for at least four months and at most four years and in addition to dismissal.

Section 3 – Bribery violation

If a public official, for himself or herself or for another

(1) asks for a gift or other unlawful benefit or otherwise takes an initiative in order to receive such a benefit, or
(2) accepts or agrees to a gift or other benefit or agrees to a promise or offer of such a gift or other benefit
so that the actions are conducive to weakening confidence in the impartiality of the actions of authorities, he or she shall be sentenced, if the act is not punishable as the acceptance of a bribe or aggravated acceptance of a bribe, for a bribery violation to a fine or to imprisonment for at most six months.

Article 70
Offences against the administration of justice
1. The Court shall have jurisdiction over the following offences against its administration of justice when committed intentionally:
(a) Giving false testimony when under an obligation pursuant to article 69, paragraph 1, to tell the truth;
(b) Presenting evidence that the party knows is false or forged;
(c) Corruptly influencing a witness, obstructing or interfering with the attendance or testimony of a witness, retaliating against a witness for giving testimony or destroying, tampering with or interfering with the collection of evidence;
(d) Impeding, intimidating or corruptly influencing an official of the Court for the purpose of forcing or persuading the official not to perform, or to perform improperly, his or her duties;
(e) Retaliating against an official of the Court on account of duties performed by that or another official;
(f) Soliciting or accepting a bribe as an official of the Court in connection with his or her official duties.