AT LARGE The three men who were arrested last weekend on suspicions of rape are all foreign nationals. This was confirmed by the police today.
The victim, a native woman, had contacted police early on Saturday morning and described to officers the appearances of the men. All three could be arrested on Saturday and were taken to the police station for interrogations. Two of the suspects were released already on Saturday afternoon, while the third was held until Sunday morning.
– The crime happened indoors in central Mariehamn and one of the men was more active, while the others participated in lesser degrees, according to the plaintiff, officer Nina Rasmus tells Ålands Nyheter.
Both victim as well as suspects are all adults of about the same age and they had been in contact with each other before. None of the suspects are Finnish citizens, but they have some kind of connection to Åland and Finland, according to police. The victim is a native woman. She suffered minor damages, such as blemishes.
– For now we are investigating this as rape and no other crimes are suspected as of yet. This can change as the investigation continues. These men are not familiar to the police since before.
All suspects have been released while police investigators wait for the lab results from samples taken, which can take several months according to Rasmus.
This is the first case in modern history of a gang rape being investigated in the Åland Islands.