Bicycles abandoned by asylum seekers in the Arctic sold by Finnish customs

The Finnish customs auctioned 190 bicycles on July 20 in Salla, Arctic Finland, the Finnish customs reported on its website.  

The bicycles were left at customs after the mass arrival of asylum seekers to the Eastern borders of Finland in the fall and winter of 2023. At the time, an old law prohibited crossing the border on foot. 

Senior customs inspector Timo Siivola told the Finnish news outlet Yle that most bikes were sold between 30 and 60 euros. The highest price for a bike was 220 euros.

All the listed Finnish checkpoints on the border with Russia are temporarily closed.

Last year, groups of migrants, many from the Middle East, moved from Russia towards the Finnish checkpoints. For example, earlier in December 2023 video obtained by the Barents Observer showed at least 15 people preparing to cross the Russia-Finnish border. All of them were given bicycles by unknown people on the Russian side. A car parked on site can be seen delivering several more bikes.

According to Finnish officials, Russian authorities had facilitated these individuals in crossing the border into Finland. As the result, Finland closed its border with Russia:

“The Russian authorities still have the capacity to instrumentalize migration towards Finland,” – the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland said back then. 

In July this year Finnish President, Alexander Stubb, approved the so-called “deportation law”, that allows the government and the president to jointly decide to temporarily suspend asylum applications at Finland’s 1300 km long eastern border to Russia.