Juhani Aataminpoika

Juhani Aataminpoika (born July 31, 1826 in Vesivehmaa – September 1854 in Suomenlinna), alias Kerpeikkari, was a Finnish serial killer. He killed 12 people in southern Finland between October and November in 1849. He has been characterized as the first serial killer in Finland.

Juhani Aataminpoika
BornJuly 31, 1826
Vesivehmaa, Finland
DiedSeptember 1854
Suomenlinna, Finland
Other names"Kerpeikkari"
Conviction(s)Murder
Criminal penaltyDeath; commuted to life imprisonment
Details
Victims12
Span of crimes
October 1849–November 1849
CountryFinland
Date apprehended
November 20, 1849
Imprisoned at1850-1854

Biography

Juhani Aataminpoika left home at the age of 15, living a nomadic life and conducting small crimes. In October 1849, he was charged for stealing horses and imprisoned. During his imprisonment, he was taken from the Hämeenlinna prison to Hauho, where the court was to be held on his crimes. During the transportation, he escaped, starting a homicidal spree. In Lammi he killed the master and mistress of the Helisevä croft with a man named Kustaa Kratula. From there, he went back to his home in Heinola, where he killed his father and mother and their children before fleeing to the forest.

Shortly afterwards, he killed a man to get his certificate to get a job at a canal site. Juhani Aataminpoika travelled to the Saimaa Canal, killing more people on the way. He didn't stay at the canal work site and slayed a sailor in order to get his papers.

At the beginning of November, Aataminpoika had returned to Lammi, from where he left with his friend Antti Suikko to go to the Tyry croft in the village of Hattelmala. The men trashed the house, stealing their money and maiming the tenants. The old mistress of the house died later from her injuries but the others managed to survive the attack.

Shortly thereafter, on November 20, Juhani Aataminpoika was caught in Palsa near Lammi and Padasjoki border. At the end of the trial following the recapture, the Vyborg Court of Appeal sentenced him to death. The sentence was upheld in the Senate's Department of Justice, but the Emperor commuted it to 40 lashes and a life imprisonment sentence. He was transferred in January 1853 to Suomenlinna and was kept there as chained to the wall until his death in 1854.

Juhani Aataminpoika was also known by nickname "Kerpeikkari", which means 'executioner'. He was famous for his own time, but his actions were forgotten for a long time and he did get the same fame as for example Matti Haapoja. In the 2000s, however, he became an interest for researchers.

Film

A film about Juhani Aataminpoika's story is planned. The script is written by Kari Hietalahti, and the film is directed by Peter Franzén. If the film is financed, it would be released in autumn 2017.[1]

Sources
  • Hämeenlinnan Kaupunkiuutisten artikkeli vuodelta 2003 (Archive.org)
  • Kaijus Ervasti (1992). The Murmansk Portrait: Matti Haapoja 1845-1895. Helsinki. ISBN 951-37-0976-0.
  • Keskisarja, Teemu (2008). "A Finnish serial killer" (in Finnish). Science. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)

References
  1. Veli-Pekka Lehtonen (1 November 2016). "A film is pending on the only Finnish serial killer". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish).

Literature
  • Jarmo Haapalainen (2007). Twelve murders in five weeks, Heinola's "beast" Finnish record (in Finnish). Heinola. ISBN 978-952-99946-0-1.
  • The only serial killer in Finland. Juhani Aataminpoika's crimes and punishment (in Finnish). Teemu Keskisarja. 2008. ISBN 978-951-796-538-5.
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