Pubdate: Fri, 05 Apr 2002 Source: Helsingin Sanomat International Edition (Finland) Copyright: 2002 2000 Helsingin Sanomat Contact: http://www.helsinki-hs.net/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1158 Author: Helsingin Sanomat CANNABIS CASE PUTS 39 HELSINKI YOUTH ON TRIAL Hashish Sold Among Friends Sometimes At Cost Price A total of 39 young people from southern Helsinki were sitting in a very crowded dock at Helsinki District Court on Thursday facing charges of distributing and using cannabis. Most of the defendants were between the ages of 17 and 22. The group have become known in the Finnish media as the "Eira Mafia", named according to the Eira district of Helsinki where many of them live. However, the image that the kids in the courtroom projected is quite far removed from any Mafia stereotypes. The defendants appeared to be quite ordinary looking boys and young men in name-brand clothes. Some of the defendants go to school or university, others have jobs, some are in the army and some are unemployed. Only five of the group had been remanded in custody. The charges involved different degrees of use, possession, and sale of hashish. Five of the defendants only faced charges of using an illegal drug. The others were charged with ordinary or serious drug crimes - involving sale. In the case of cannabis, the border between an ordinary and a serious drug crime is one kilo of hashish. Media coverage of the case has focused on the fact that the defendants do not fit the image that many people have of hardened drug criminals. In spite of their collective nickname, there is no indication that any of the members of the "Eira Mafia" have used violence or committed any crimes beyond their actual involvement with an illegal drug. The distribution activity was apparently largely limited to sharing cannabis among mutual friends, with the sellers often making no profit. However, the police, who are still investigating the case, believe that the group may have sold cannabis to as many as 200 people in three different cities outside Helsinki. The actual amount of drugs involved is much smaller than in many other recent high-profile drug cases: according to prosecutor Tove Myhrberg, about 30 kilos of hashish were sold from the spring of 2000 until the autumn of last year. In addition, some of the members of the group are believed to have been involved in the sale of about 700 ecstasy tablets, as well as small-scale dealings in marijuana, amphetamine, and cocaine. In court the young defendants mostly admitted their guilt. The defendants were required to enter their pleas standing up, and some forgot to take off their caps. One defendant said that he initially bought quantities of hashish of a few dozen grammes each from a friend in the summer and autumn of 2001. Later the quantities rose to more than 200 grammes and the purchases became more frequent. What he did not sell to his friends he smoked himself. His use was almost daily. As the trial was opening in Helsinki, Vantaa District Court handed down a number of prison sentences in a drug distribution case that was partly related to the "Eira Mafia" case. The longest sentence - five years and four months in prison, was handed down to a 23-year old Vantaa man who had reportedly supplied several kilos of hashish to three of the defendants in the Helsinki case. Previously in HS International Edition: Teenagers' drug sales network uncovered (11.1.2002) - --- MAP posted-by: Beth