Juhani Aataminpoika (; born 31 July 1826 in Vesivehmaa,

Asikkala Asikkala () is a municipality of Finland. Its seat is in Vääksy, at the shores of the Lake Päijänne. It is located in the province of Southern Finland and is part of the Päijänne Tavastia region. Asikkala's neighboring municipalities are H ...

– September 1854 in

Suomenlinna Suomenlinna (; until 1918 Viapori, ), or Sveaborg (), is an inhabited sea fortress the Suomenlinna district is on eight islands of which six have been fortified; it is about 4 km southeast of the city center of Helsinki, the capital of Finla ...

), alias Kerpeikkari (), was a

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

serial killer A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A * * * * with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...

. He killed 12 people in southern Finland between October and November in 1849. He has been characterized as the first serial killer in Finland.

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 Hämeenlinna (; sv, Tavastehus; krl, Hämienlinna; la, Tavastum or ''Croneburgum'') is a city and municipality of about inhabitants in the heart of the historical province of Tavastia and the modern province of Kanta-Häme in the south of F ...

prison to

Hauho Hauho is a former municipality of Finland. It was situated in the province of Southern Finland and is today a part of the region of Tavastia Proper (Kanta-Häme / Egentliga Tavastland). Hauho was amalgamated with the municipality of Hämeenlinna ...

, where the court was to be held on his crimes. During the transportation, he escaped, starting a homicidal spree. In

Lammi Lammi ( sv, Lammi, also ) is a former municipality of Finland. It was consolidated with Hämeenlinna on 2009-01-01. It is located in the province of Southern Finland and is part of the Tavastia Proper region. The municipality had a population ...

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 Heinola () is a town and a municipality of inhabitants () located in the eastern part of the Päijänne Tavastia region, Finland, near the borders of the South Savonia region and the Kymenlaakso region. It is the third largest municipality in ...

, where he killed his father and mother and their two children before fleeing to the forest.Suomenlinnaan vangittiin ihmisiä vihaava peto – Juhani Aataminpoika kierteli Hämettä ja murhasi vastaantulijoita
(in Finnish)
– ''

Ilta-Sanomat ''Ilta-Sanomat'' () is one of Finland's two prominent tabloid size evening newspaper and the second largest paper in the country. Its counterpart and biggest rival is ''Iltalehti''. According to the National Media Research done in 2019 ''Ilta- ...

'' (in Finnish) 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 The Saimaa Canal ( fi, Saimaan kanava; sv, Saima kanal; russian: Сайменский канал) is a transportation canal that connects lake Saimaa with the Gulf of Finland near Vyborg, Russia. The canal was built from 1845 to 1856 and opened ...

, killing more people on the way. He didn't stay at the canal work site but killed a sailor in order to get his papers. At the beginning of November, Aataminpoika had returned to Lammi, from which 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 elderly mistress of the house died later from her injuries but the others managed to survive the attack. Shortly thereafter, on 20 November, Juhani Aataminpoika was caught in Palsa near Lammi and

Padasjoki Padasjoki () is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the province of Southern Finland and is part of the Päijänne Tavastia region. It is from Padasjoki to Lahti and to Heinola. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area ...

border. At the end of the trial following the recapture, the Vyborg Court of Appeal sentenced him to

death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

. The sentence was upheld in the Senate's Department of Justice, but the Emperor commuted it to 40 lashes and a

life imprisonment Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...

sentence. He was transferred in January 1853 to Suomenlinna and was kept there, chained to the wall, until his death in 1854. Juhani Aataminpoika was also known by the nickname "Kerpeikkari", which means 'executioner'. He was famous in his own time, but his actions were eventually forgotten and he did not end up with the same level of fame as for example Matti Haapoja. In the 2000s, however, he once again sparked an interest for researchers.

Film

A movie about Juhani Aataminpoika's life is still in the planning stages. The script is written by

Kari Hietalahti Kari-Jukka Hietalahti (born 13 September 1964) is a Finnish actor and screenwriter. Career Kari Hietalahti is best known for having appeared in several popular Finnish television series, such as '' Vintiöt'', '' Ihmisten puolue'', and '' Roba ...

, and the film is to be directed by

Peter Franzén Peter Vilhelm Franzén (born 14 August 1971) is a Finnish actor, author, screenwriter, and director. He is best known for his role as King Harald Finehair in ''Vikings'' (2016–2020). Personal life Franzén was born in Keminmaa, north Finland. ...

. Earlier plans were to see the movie released by the autumn of 2017, but as of 2022 the film has yet to be financed, putting it in production limbo.

Sources

*
Hämeenlinnan Kaupunkiuutisten artikkeli vuodelta 2003
(Archive.org) * *

References

Literature

* *

External links

* Kaijus Ervasti
/ Juhani Aataminpoika
''Kansallisbiografia-verkkojulkaisu (maksullinen)''. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura.

Täällä kitui suomalainen sarjamurhaaja (Suomenlinna)
Hs.fi {{DEFAULTSORT:Aataminpoika, Juhani 1826 births 1854 deaths Familicides Finnish mass murderers Finnish serial killers Male serial killers Serial killers who died in prison custody