Turku Court of Appeal Raises Albert Mkrtchian's Sentence to 8.5 Years for Tampere Market Square Stabbing

Yle reports the Turku Court of Appeal found the 9 August 2025 attack at Tampere Market Square (Keskustori) was premeditated and reclassified the Pirkanmaa District Court’s November verdict as attempted murder. The Pirkanmaa District Court had in November sentenced 67-year-old Albert Mkrtchian to 5.5 years for attempted manslaughter and other offences; the appeal court increased the term to 8.5 years and upheld findings of aggravated assault and breach of a restraining order.

Court documents say Mkrtchian had threatened to kill his former partner a week before the incident, travelled from Mikkeli to Tampere with a knife and a metal rod, and was accompanied by three young Ukrainian men. The victims were his ex-wife and her new partner. The woman suffered serious injuries, including two cuts to her lower back and internal organ damage, but her condition was not life-threatening. Police arrested Mkrtchian later the same day.

Aamulehti reported the appellate court described the stabbing as carried out with “careful deliberation” and noted that a restraining order prohibiting contact with the victim and her children was in force at the time. The restraining order had been issued by the Southern Savonia District Court; Mkrtchian had previously contested it, but the Eastern Finland Court of Appeal kept the order in place. Aamulehti also reported that the victim and her children had fled Ukraine to Finland with official help, that Mkrtchian had stalked and threatened them over an extended period, and that the attack took place in front of a four-year-old. The appellate court raised the victim compensation to €9,500 from €6,100, Aamulehti reported.