Assault on Danish PM Mette Frederiksen: Suspect to face judge for questioning

Mette FrederiksenCopenhagen: Danish police said on Saturday a 39-year-old man would appear in front of a judge for preliminary questioning in relation to an assault on the country's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen in central Copenhagen late on Friday. Frederiksen, leader of Denmark's Social Democratic Party and prime minister since 2019, was shocked after being beaten by a man at Kultorvet square in Copenhagen on Friday, her office said in a statement on Friday.

The prime minister was able to walk away and had no outward signs of harm after the assault, Soren Kjergaard, who works as a barista in central Copenhagen, told mediapersons after seeing her being escorted away by security. Police said the man would be brought before the Copenhagen City Court for questioning at around 1 p.m. (1100 GMT), but declined to provide more detail.

Neither the police nor the prime minister's office said anything about the man's motive or whether he had carried a weapon. The assault comes two days before Danes head to the polls in the European Union election. A month ago, three German politicians suffered assaults ahead of European Parliament and district council elections.