Parliamentary Ombudsman Jari Råman criticises the procedure of the police during the night-time transport of a remand prisoner, which lasted around 10 hours. The transport started in the evening at 20:30 and ended in the morning at around 6:00. During the journey, the prisoner was transferred between police cars seven times, travelling in the rear of van-type police vehicles throughout the journey.

According to the Ombudsman, no acceptable reason had been given for the night-time transport. The transport was based on the assumption that the transfer of the prisoner must be carried out immediately. However, the District Court decision contained no such order. According to the Parliamentary Ombudsman, the police could have arranged the transport for the following day.

“A remand prisoner or other person held in police custody must not be prevented from sleeping during the night without compelling grounds. Night-time transport may only be justified in exceptional situations with a compelling and very weighty reason, such as a sudden security threat or a medical emergency,” Råman says.

No fault was found in the procedure of the police patrol units involved in the transport. However, the Ombudsman drew the attention of the inspector who had decided on the transport to the fact that decision-making on the transport of prisoners requires careful case-by-case deliberation.

Parliamentary Ombudsman requests reassessment of reform of Act on the Transport of Prisoners

The decision also assessed the division of duties between the police and the Criminal Sanctions Agency in the transport of prisoners. The Act does not clearly indicate whether the police can first take a remand prisoner to the nearest prison, from where the Criminal Sanctions Agency would transport them onwards using its own vehicles. For long journeys, this could be a more humane option for the prisoner than having to sit in a police car. The Parliamentary Ombudsman draws attention to the fact that the remand prisoner travelled the entire journey in the back of police vans. The Ombudsman draws attention to the fact that the van-type police transport vehicles are unsuitable for long journeys, which is also evident from the statements provided by the police in the matter.

According to the Parliamentary Ombudsman, the division of duties between the Criminal Sanctions Agency and the police is still based on a decree issued in 1954. According to the Ombudsman, such significant tasks involving the exercise of public authority should be regulated more precisely by law than at present.

The Parliamentary Ombudsman requests that the Ministry of Justice assess whether it could resume the suspended reform of the Act on the Transport of Prisoners. The ministry must state by 26 February 2027 what measures the decision has given rise to.

Decision EOAK/4691/2025 is available (in Finnish) on the Parliamentary Ombudsman’s website at www.oikeusasiamies.fi.

Further information is available from Senior Legal Adviser Peter Fagerholm, tel. +358 9 432 3372.