Bottas, girlfriend cleared over covid-19 border breach

Valtteri Bottas and his girlfriend have been cleared of wrongdoing over a breach of Finland’s covid-19 lockdown back in 2020.

Helsingin Sanomat newspaper reports that Tiffany Cromwell, an Australian citizen and professional cyclist, wrongly entered Finland with her Formula 1 driver boyfriend when only Finnish citizens were allowed to.

Correspondent Lasse Kerkela reports that Cromwell was aboard a private plane with Bottas when it landed at Helsinki-Vantaa airport in March 2020 - the most intense lockdown period of the pandemic.

"Later, an anonymous notification arrived in the Border Guard’s internal ethics channel," Kerkela explained.

"The legal department began investigating whether Cromwell received special treatment compared to others. But according to documents seen by Helsingin Sanomat, neither Cromwell nor Bottas have been suspected of wrongdoing.

"Based on the same documentation, the border authority has not succeeded in finding out what exactly happened in its own operations. But according to a shift manager, the top management of the Border Guard ordered that Cromwell be let into the country."

Markku Hassinen, the border guard’s deputy chief, "denies that he acted wrongly", the newspaper added.

In a statement, Hassinen confirmed that he did not act "incorrectly or fraudulently".

A statement by Finland’s ministry of the interior, meanwhile, explained that it has been difficult to investigate the matter because it was based in part on verbal information.

No further action is being taken.