Turku attack suspect was denied asylum

The suspect of Turku knife attack Abderrahman Mechkah was denied asylum in Finland and appealed against the decision of Finnish Immigration Services, reported the national broadcaster Yle quoting the police.

The 18-year-old Moroccan allegedly ran amok on Friday afternoon wielding a knife and attacked crowds at market squares in central Turku stabbing people indiscriminately, leaving two Finnish women dead and eight others wounded.

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Robin Lardot told Yle on Monday that Mechkah’s asylum application was rejected.

Lardot also said that the suspect already appealed against the decision before carrying out the knife attack.

The police interrogated the man on Sunday afternoon but released no details.

Crista Granroth, officer in charge of the investigation, told the Finnish News Agency that there were “ideological thoughts” behind the attack but did not specify what kind of ideology the investigators had been able to discern.