A case involving suspicions of serious environmental crimes begins at Western Uusimaa district court on Tuesday.
An investigation by Finland's National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in cooperation with Estonian officials uncovered evidence that thousands of tons of waste were illegally transported between Finland and Estonia.
Investigating officers believe the purpose was to avoid payments related to the transport of waste materials.
The initial investigation involved 70 shipments totalling about 1,700 tonnes of construction waste from Finland to Estonia, which were made over a period of about 6 months without the correct permits.
While that probe was ongoing, the NBI uncovered evidence that the same suspects had also shipped about 860 tonnes of transformer oil — classified as hazardous waste — from Finland to Estonia between May 2018 and November 2019.
The third suspected crime involved 26 illegal shipments totalling about 670 tonnes of oil waste sent from Estonia to Finland.
The NBI suspect that six individuals and seven companies from both countries took part in the activity. The charges in the case are one count of damaging the environment and two counts of aggravated damage to the environment, which occurred between 2018 and 2020.
All of the defendants in the case have denied the charges, prosecutors said.
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