Model who posed TOPLESS while kissing friend in Finnish PM Sanna Marin’s residence apologises

The model who posed topless while kissing her semi-naked friend in Finnish prime minister Sanna Marin’s official residence has apologised for her ‘inappropriate behaviour’. 

Sabina Särkkä, 33, a social media influencer, said she was ‘deeply sorry’ for causing further embarrassment to the under-fire party-loving leader.

The raunchy picture was taken next to an official blue backdrop where Marin, 36, is often filmed making official announcements. 

Särkkä posted it on TikTok after the evening spent with Ms Marin and other celebrity friends at the official residence of Kesäranta.

The image which was taken on July 10 after the group had gone to a rock festival showed the glamorous Finnish blonde and her friend pulling up their tops while kissing each other.

Ms Särkkä who was dressed in a cowboy hat, denim shorts and a leather jacket held her hand over her breasts while her friend covered her chest in the picture by holding a sign saying ‘FINLAND’ which is usually on Ms Marin’s desk.

Sabina Särkkä (pictured), 33, a social media influencer, said she was ‘deeply sorry’ for causing further embarrassment to the under-fire party-loving leader.

Ms Särkkä’s statement follows an earlier apology by Ms Marin who admitted yesterday that the picture should ‘never have been taken’

It is often seen when she takes part in international video conferences, often talking to other European Union and world leaders. 

She issued her apology in a post with a solemn black background on her Instagram account which has 90,000 followers.

Ms Särkkä said: ‘I published on 10.7. an inappropriate picture that should not have been taken. I am deeply sorry and apologize for my behaviour.’

Her post which has attracted more than 3,000 likes has been closed to comments.

Ms Särkkä’s statement follows an earlier apology by Ms Marin who admitted yesterday that the picture should ‘never have been taken’.

The emergence of the picture followed several days of controversy for the prime minister following the leaking of a series of videos of her dancing and partying with friends on a now notorious night out earlier this month.

Former beauty queen Ms Särkkä, who has featured on numerous TV reality shows in Finland and is now a social media influencer, was one of the two women who exposed their breasts and kissed in Marin’s presidential office

Ms Marin, 36, was forced to admit that the photograph which was screenshotted from a video should ‘never have been taken’ after it began circulating on Twitter (Marin is pictured sitting at the desk where the infamous topless snap was taken)

Finland’s party-loving prime minister (seen wearing white jeans) has been filmed dancing closely with a glamorous former model in yet another raunchy video (pictured) of her notorious night out. The newly leaked footage shows Sanna Marin, 36, dancing provocatively with Finnish social media influencer Sabina Särkkä, 33

One of the videos featured Ms Marin appearing to ‘grind’ into Ms Sarkka as they danced intimately with their arms around each other as dawn could be seen breaking in a rooftop nightclub in central Helsinki.

The videos have led to some commentators questioning whether it is appropriate for a world leader to be seen out and about letting her hair down.

But many others have rallied to support under-fire Ms Marin, saying she is entitled to enjoy herself to unwind from the pressures of her job.

MailOnline can reveal that Ms Marin also posed for a controversial picture nearly two-years-ago at her luxurious taxpayer-funded residence on the waterfront in Helsinki.

The picture published in Trendi magazine showed the then 34-year-old wearing a stylish black blazer with a plunging neckline and no top underneath.

It can now be revealed that it was taken on a sheltered decking area jutting out into the sea in the grounds of her official villa which was built in 1863.

These screenshots taken from the Finnish influencer’s TikTok show her gallivanting around the grounds of the Prime Minister’s official residence

The official home of the Finnish Prime Minister, Sanna Marin, was built in 1863 on a secluded waterside spot with its own jetty

MailOnline spotted the shelter from a vantage point on a dog walking park on an island opposite the residence and identified it as being in the backdrop of the image.

Ms Marin’s choice of outfit was branded ‘inappropriate’ by some social media users after the snap was shared on the magazine’s Instagram account in October 2020

One person suggested it ‘eroded’ her credibility while another labelled it as ‘ridiculous’.

But many fans of Ms Marin jumped to her defence by sharing photographs of themselves posed in similar ensembles under the hashtag #imwithsanna.

Thousands of posts were shared featuring photos of everyday people and Finnish celebrities wearing near-identical outfits as supporters praised the ‘stylish image’.

One fan wrote: ‘Anyone who condemns an over-open neck can stop hypocrisy. Our beautiful Prime Minister, who is a good role model for all Finnish women.’

Another said: ‘Such a wonderful woman who is not afraid to break the dusty hardened patriarchal formulas.’

One video taken by Ms Särkkä featured the friends wandering down a path in the Prime Ministerial grounds beside a tennis court (pictured)

Ms Marin revealed yesterday that the controversial topless picture of her friends was taken in her workspace near the toilets on the ground floor of Kesäranta.

She said her friends had been in the garden and only had access to her house to use the toilets.

It was posted on Ms Särkkä’s TikTok account, along with another video showing her and other friends of Ms Marin dancing in the gardens of Kesäranta, led by Finnish singer-songwriter Alma, 26, as they sashayed down a path beside a tennis court.

Ms Särkkä is thought to have deleted the controversial images from her TikTok account, but not before they were screenshotted and re-posted on Twitter.

Former beauty queen Ms Särkkä – who represented Finland in the 2012 Miss World contest – has featured on numerous TV reality shows in Finland and is now a social media influencer with 90,000 followers on Instagram.

She revealed in an Instagram story just six days ago that she had split up with her husband Ossi Kivimäki.

The couple who married in Greece in 2019 had spoken last year about their plans to move away from Helsinki and turn a 100-year-old log cabin into ‘the home of their dreams’

Sanna Marin has been under pressure over wild night out earlier this month after footage emerged showing her dancing intimately with a man in a nightclub

Ms Marin, who is married and has a four-year-old daughter, was said to have danced with three different men and then sat in the laps of two male companions, according to witnesses

Ms Marin is seen in white jeans (centre) dancing with friends at Klubi, an upmarket nightclub attached to a restaurant complex in central Helsinki

Ms Marin said: ‘I have seen this footage this morning. Yes, they are from Kesäranta. They were filmed on Sunday, the Sunday after Ruisrock. At the time, I had friends in Kesäranta spending the evening.

‘The toilets downstairs in Kesäranta have also been used by guests. Apparently one of these pictures was taken in that state.

‘I think that picture is not correct, I apologise for that. That kind of picture shouldn’t have been taken, but otherwise nothing miraculous happened during the evening.’

Ms Marin added: ‘Of course, as Prime Minister, I would like to focus on the substantive issues of politics.

But referring to the controversy over videos of her letting her hair down, she added: ‘Of course, I understand that the media also wants to write about it. I can’t control it

‘Personally, I don’t see anything wrong with the fact that even we politicians at this level have free time, we spend it with friends.

‘We also live other lives and the citizens’ task in elections is always to evaluate their point of view, whether it is appropriate and what they think about it. I trust Finns and Finns’ ability to judge.’

The release of the raucous video comes just months after Marin was forced to apologise for going out clubbing till 4am after coming into contact with a Covid-19 case

The footage of Ms Marin dancing provocatively with Ms Särkkä was taken on the crowded dancefloor of the Klubi nightclub which is part of the Ravintola Teatteri restaurant and bar complex in Helsinki.

She was also videoed in the same nightclub on the same night dancing closely with Finnish singer Olavi Uusivirta, 38, leading to him issuing a denial that they were having an affair.

Other young revellers can be seen looking on in amazement at the sight of their prime minister enjoying herself.

Ms Marin who is married with a four-year-old daughter was earlier filmed dancing on the same night with Finnish celebrity friends in two apartments before heading to the club.

One video featured someone shouting the words ‘flour gang’ in the background, leading to speculation that drugs might have been taken as ‘flour’ is slang for cocaine in Finland.

The claims led to Ms Marin holding a press conference last Friday when she denied ever taking drugs and insisted she had not seen any being taken by anyone else on her night out.

She revealed that she had taken a drugs test to prove her innocence, and her official spokesperson confirmed this week that the results had come back as negative.

It was also reported that witnesses claimed that she danced with another two men in similar fashion and sat on the laps of two others during the high-spirited night out in the early hours of August 7.

Women from Finland and around the world have posted a string of videos of themselves dancing in various situations in a show of solidarity with Ms Marin.

Other social media users have compared her dance moves favourably with the clumsy dancefloor antics of UK leader Boris Johnson, suggesting that she would easily win a ‘prime ministers’ dance off’ between the UK and Finland

Ms Marin is thought to have been in the nightclub between 2.30am and 4.30am before being driven home to her official residence.

The video was leaked to Finnish tabloid Seiska which breathlessly reported that it showed Ms Marin dancing ‘in a very hot atmosphere’.

The publication excitedly added: ‘In the video, the married housewife dances with Sabina intimately close, with her legs spread apart.

‘The atmosphere of the dance is so intense that the prime minister squeezes her friend by the back of her outfit’.

The footage sparked an angry backlash in Finland with some social media users condemning Seiska as ‘sick’ for publishing it.

Marin pictured ready to party at the Flow festival in Helsinki with photographer and influencer Janita Autio – who was featured in the original party video – on the latter’s Instagram account

One Twitter user said: ‘There is absolutely nothing hot, nothing intimate, nothing special, but this is how women have fun with each other.’

Another added: ‘Which is worse? Wondering about the women dancing with each other or hinting that Sabina is not suitable company for married housewives.’

The earlier video showed Finnish singer-songwriter Uusivirta pressing his face against Ms Marin’s neck at one point in a gesture that some elements of the country’s media have claimed was a kiss.

It was also reported that witnesses claimed that she danced with another two men in similar fashion and sat on the laps of two others during the high-spirited night out.

Uusivirta who got divorced from his wife last year, dismissed any suggestion that he was in a relationship with his country’s leader.

In a post on his social media accounts, he said: ‘There has been speculation in the public about the quality of the relationship between me and prime minister Sanna Marin.

‘Hand on heart I can just say it like it is: we are friends and nothing inappropriate has happened. I won’t comment on the matter anymore publicly. Have a great weekend!’

The Klubi nightclub where the videos were taken in the early hours of August 7 is part of the Ravintola Teatteri restaurant and bar complex in central Helsinki.

The nightspot is known as one of the trendiest in Finland’s capital and attracts a well-heeled crowd of party lovers of all ages.

MailOnline earlier revealed that a lounge area where revellers can relax with drinks features a collection of erotic portraits of naked women on the walls.

The four full frontal paintings all feature natural-looking women, rather than skinny catwalk models, reflecting Finland’s relaxed attitude to nudity.

Staff at the Teatteri have refused to comment about their prime minister’s visit to the complex.

One waitress told a MailOnline reporter: ‘Of course we are not saying anything. There is nobody here who will talk to you.

‘We cannot confirm whether our prime minister was here. Anyway, how is your prime minister Boris Johnson?’

Speaking at her press conference at her official residence in Helsinki last Friday, Ms Marin denied that Uusivirta had kissed her when they danced, saying that he might have leant towards her to say something.

She strongly defended her right to enjoy herself on a night out with friends, insisting that it did not interfere with her official duties.

Ms Marin claimed that she had drunk only a moderate amount and had not even woken up with a hangover in the morning.