Turku attack suspect says he had targeted women

The suspect of the attack that left two dead and eight others injured last August in Turku, Finland said Tuesday that he had targeted women.

Questioning of the suspect Abderrahman Bouanane began on Tuesday morning. Bouanane told the court that women irritated him. Among the ten victims, seven were women and three were men.

Bouanane is facing two murder charges and eight attempted murders with terrorist intent. The defense has admitted to the deeds, but has denied the terrorist intent or any plan to carry out the attack.

Bouanane said he was irritated by women in his native country Morocco and later in Italy and Germany. He said his first victim in Turku smiled at him and that bothered him. He also said he realized she was distributing religious leaflets at the market place.

Bouanane's lawyer Jaakko Gummerus said the emphasis on women was a new matter to him.

Hannu Koistinen, one of the prosecutors said the psychiatric testing carried out by an independent Finnish authority confirmed Bouanane was criminally responsible. Koistinen reminded though that the testing applied to the time of the alleged crime, not to his later state of mind.

After the lunch break during the trial, the accused refused to sit down on his chair and wanted to sit on the floor. He was denied the request and taken away. His lawyer Gummerus said the accused was nervous. The judge decided to close the hearing for the day and continue on Wednesday.