Nightwish Manager Ewo Pohjola Charged with Assaulting Two Women
Finnish prosecutors have charged Nightwish manager Ewo Pohjola with “mild assault” for allegedly strangling one woman and manhandling another at an industry event last October. The charges come following a months long investigation by area police.
According to officials, the incident allegedly took place during last year’s Music x Media event in Tampere, Finland. In a report by the Finnish Broadcasting Company (also known as YLE), someone close to the investigation suggested that the assault “had sexual characteristics.”
Pohjola is the co-owner of Till Dawn They Count Management Ltd, which he runs with Nighwish’s other manager Toni Peiju. He’s been Nightwish’s manager since the early 2000s.
We reached out to Nightwish for comment and we were told the following:
“The band will not comment on the ongoing situation until the case has been closed.”
Back in February, the news outlet reported that they’d spoken with a woman in her twenties that she was approached at the bar by a “visibly drunk” Pohjola and one other man. After telling her she was beautiful, the woman said she saw Pohjola leave the bar. While speaking with the other man, the woman alleges she then felt someone put their hands around her neck in “a tight stranglehold.”
The woman told the news agency that the whole incident allegedly only lasted a few seconds, after which point Pohjola supposedly told the woman that “it felt exciting,” leaving her feeling confused about what just happened. YLE say they have since seen the criminal complaint that was filed following the incident.
“What happened seems particularly outrageous in the context of an opportunity for networking in the music industry: older, experienced and powerful people meet young and novice artists.”
A second woman also came forward to YLE with a similar allegation, though she didn’t press charges. In her instance, she was at the bar when Pohjola allegedly forcefully pulled her closer to him. Though she said she initially let it pass so things wouldn’t escalate, she reported that Pohjola allegedly grabbed her by the hair from behind and again pulled her close to him. It was then that she claims she repeatedly told Pohjola to let her go.
Following that incident, Pohjola was kicked out of the event. Music x Media CEO Jani Jalonen confirmed that misconduct had taken place during the event.
“We are aware that, unfortunately, there has been inappropriate behavior at our event. We cannot comment on the details.
“Every participant in our event is required to commit to the event’s values and respect others. We have a process for potential harassment situations, according to which we act.”
At the time of the initial report, Pohjola denied the allegations. Though he didn’t hide the fact that he was at the event, he said he wasn’t aware of any charges against him.
“I’ve been there and that’s what makes this strange. I, and no one from our company, has any idea about this. Special.”
We will keep an eye on this story as it develops, so be sure to keep an eye out for new details as they come.
