The criminal charge received by ex-alpine skier Sami Uotila comes as a surprise.
According to IS information, Sami Juhani Utila (46) has been charged with a crime again.
Now he is being accused of trying to incite to make baseless statements.
Uotila has a nine-month suspended prison sentence for serious environmental damage, and the charge Uotila received is related to that trial.
Read more: Harsh punishment for former Finnish national team alpine skier
Utila says she called an environmental center official about a week before the trial began. The prosecutor believes that Utila may have tried to influence with her words what the officer said in the criminal trial.
Utila denies this.
According to him, it was important to make sure the officer remembered things correctly, as at that time five years had passed since the alleged environmental crime. Utila made the call in September 2020.
– I had already confirmed with the lawyer that I can make the call. It was very important because it was so many years old at that time. It was most important for our protection that he should speak the truth and remember the truth.
– I hoped he was telling the truth. We had a good-natured conversation with him, and he hasn’t claimed anything else. That’s why I’m surprised that something like this has to go to court, Utila tells IS.
Utila faces a minimum fine and a maximum of one year in prison.
Utila has denied committing the crime.
– It’s really amazing.
The indictment received by Utila will be heard in the Lansi-Usima district court on Tuesday.
In its April 2021 decision, the Lanci-Usima District Court recognized that Utila had caused environmental damage in the ski-slope area of Vihti Ski Center. Utila serves as the CEO of the ski center.
In the years 2015-2016, about 103 tons of soil waste were dumped on the slopes of Vihti Skin in 2015-2016, with the concentration of harmful substances exceeding the permissible limit values. Soil was transported to Vihti from two construction areas located in Espoo.
The slopes of Vihti are located in the conservation area of the Isolahte water intake. According to the court, this act led to the release of micro-organisms into the groundwater in the area.
Utila has appealed against the court’s decision to the Helsinki Court of Appeal, where the case is still pending. That trial is scheduled to begin in August.
Utila was a member of the Finnish national team from 1993 to 2007. His main sport in alpine skiing was Giant Slalom.
