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Three injured in explosion at Lidl’s German headquarters

Three people were hurt Wednesday in a blast at the German headquarters of discount supermarket Lidl, but police declined to confirm media reports of a letter bomb.

Published: 17 February 2021 19:48 CET
Updated: 17 February 2021 22:55 CET
Three injured in explosion at Lidl's German headquarters
A criminal technician at the site of the explosion. Photo: DPA

The explosion occurred in an administrative building at the company's head offices in Neckarsulm, western Germany, shortly before 2 pm.

The three injured people were taken to hospital and around 100 employees were evacuated from the premises.

“Based on the current status of the investigation, a letter exploded inside the building,” police said in a statement.

The blast triggered a large emergency response with police, firefighters, several ambulances and a rescue helicopter racing to the scene.

Police officers combed through the building with sniffer dogs but no further suspicious items were found, the statement added.

“We are deeply upset about the incident and wish our colleagues a good and swift recovery,” Lidl said in a statement to German news agency DPA.

According to police, one person was “moderately wounded” in the blast while the two others suffered only light injuries.

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CRIME

Rammstein frontman denies sexual assault allegations

A law firm representing the frontman of German rock band Rammstein, who has been hit by a wave of sexual assault claims, on Thursday categorically denied the allegations.

Published: 8 June 2023 18:04 CEST
Rammstein frontman denies sexual assault allegations

Several women have come forward recently to claim they were drugged and recruited to engage in sexual activity with Till Lindemann, 60, at Rammstein after-show parties.

“Various women have made serious accusations against our client,” Berlin-based law firm Schertz Bergmann said in a statement.

“These allegations are without exception untrue,” it said, adding that legal action would be taken against the women.

READ ALSO: German band Rammstein hit by sex abuse scandal

The scandal erupted after a young Irish woman posted on social media that she had been drugged and propositioned by Lindemann at a backstage party in Vilnius.

A wave of similar stories has since emerged through platforms such as Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

The uproar around the allegations led to all after-show parties being cancelled at a series of Rammstein concerts in Munich this week.

Berlin has also said that after-show parties will be cancelled at the band’s upcoming concerts in the German capital in July.

The allegations prompted German Families Minister Lisa Paus to call for better protection for fans at concerts.

Rammstein, an industrial metal band founded in 1994, is known for grinding guitar riffs, taboo-breaking antics and theatrical stage shows heavy on pyrotechnics.

Their songs have dealt with subjects from cannibalism to necrophilia and the band name itself evokes the 1988 Ramstein air show disaster that killed 70 people and injured more than 1,000.

The band has denied the allegations.

But German media have reported that Alena Makeeva, a Russian woman accused of recruiting young women to engage in sexual relations with Lindemann, has been banned from all further Rammstein concerts.

Makeeva called herself Rammstein’s “casting director” and had been working for the band since 2019, according to Die Welt daily.

READ ALSO: Who are Rammstein and why are they so big in Germany?

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