Police visited Tallinn children's safe house before drugs death

Criminal proceedings have been launched after a drug related death of a 16-year-old boy at a children's home in Tallinn, Delfi reported.
The evening before the death, the Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) had been called out to the facility, receiving a call shortly before 7 p.m.
Staff at the Tallinn Center for Children at Risk (TLTK) suspected two 16-year-old boys had used narcotic substances, while a substance resembling drugs was also found, said Artur Kamnerov, head of the PPA's narcotics and organized crime department.
According to Kamnerov, the PPA personnel attending spoke with the boys and, together with paramedics, determined that the substances were not drugs but prescribed medications.
No search was conducted, but PPA received notification of the 16-year-old's death a little after 7:30 a.m. on Thursday, February 5.
Kristel Ulp, group leader of the PPA's Kristiine district, told Delfi the day after the incident that a staff member who had gone to rouse the boy and his roommate that morning discovered the deceased motionless.
"The staff member tried to wake the boy by shaking him but realized that the young man had passed away, and [the staffer] called the emergency center," Ulp said, adding first responders attending the scene confirmed the boy's death.
Kamnerov noted in response to whether the PPA could have inspected the TLTK premises on Nõmme tee before the death, that this generally requires authorization from an administrative court, with the only exception being in criminal proceedings, "though this presupposes indications of a crime."
Kamnerov added that the PPA responds to each call based on its content and risk assessment, adding the PPA's main objective is to limit the drug market and sales, especially when it comes to young people.
"Following the tragic event, we have launched criminal proceedings to establish all the precise circumstances of what happened," Kamnerov said.
--
Editor: Andrew Whyte










