Finnish police have detained two Internet chat friends of a man (19) who killed himself and six others last week when he set off a bomb in a shopping centre.
Ms Tuula Kyren, spokeswoman for the National Bureau for Investigation, said it was trying to find out what connection the two have to the bomber, Petri Gerdt, but that they are not under suspicion of being involved in the bombing.
The detained men frequently discussed bomb-related topics with the bomber on a website about home-made explosives which he often visited. The Internet site has been shut down since last Friday's bombing.
Police have few clues as to why Mr Gerdt, a quiet chemistry student who lived at home with his parents, carried out the attack that injured around 100 people but suspect he may have been inspired by the website.
The home-made bomb contained up to two kilogrammes of explosive materials and a large number of lead and steel shotgun pellets, apparently aimed at killing as many people as possible, police said.
The blast happened late Friday on the ground floor of an atrium of the Myyrmanni shopping mall in the city of Vantaa, 12 kilometres north of the capital, Helsinki.
AFP