A 67-year-old man who was arrested in the German port city of Bremerhaven after threatening to attack people at the city’s Christmas market in a TikTok video has been released following a psychiatric examination.
A psychiatrist found that the man did not represent a danger to others, broadcaster Radio Bremen reported on Monday.
In a video posted on TikTok on Sunday evening, the man said he would “stab everyone who looked Arab or southern” at the Bremerhaven market on Christmas Day. “Everyone. I’ll take enough knives with me,” he added.
Several TikTok users flagged the video to the police, who said they were able to identify the suspect “very quickly” and provisionally detained him the same night.
According to investigators, the man had not previously attracted attention with such statements.
The man admitted to having drunk alcohol before publishing the video and said in a statement that it was complete nonsense, investigators added.
A spokesman for the public prosecutor’s office said the man is now being investigated for disturbing public peace. If found guilty, he would face a fine or imprisonment for up to three years.
News of the TikTok threat came just days after a 50-year-old man drove a car through the crowd at a Christmas market in the central German city of Magdeburg on Friday evening, killing five, including a 9-year-old child, and wounding more than 200.
Crime experts have often warned of so-called “copycat” events following a serious crime.
The Bremerhaven Christmas market runs until December 30, but is not open on Christmas Day.
Ulrich Mäurer, the state interior minister, said the police would significantly increase their presence at the Christmas markets as a precaution.
