Metal needles found in Halloween sweets across Germany

Two families in Essen reported finding metal needles in Halloween sweets after trick-or-treating on Saturday evening. Police in Essen launched investigations into attempted dangerous bodily harm in both cases.

In one case, the father of a 13-year-old boy noticed suspicious puncture marks on a chocolate bar wrapper from the Stoppenberg district and later found a needle pressed into the side of the bar. Another family from Burgaltendorf found needles in a chocolate bar and a bag of wine gums.

“Please check the sweets for possible puncture marks before consumption and contact the police immediately in case of suspicious findings.”

Police warned parents across the city to inspect all collected sweets before consumption and to contact officers immediately if anything suspicious was found. They also asked possible witnesses to come forward.

Similar reports emerged from Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Thuringia, Lower Saxony, Bremen, Schleswig-Holstein, North Rhine-Westphalia and three districts of Saxony-Anhalt, as well as one case in Austria. In addition to needles, screws, nails and sewing needles were discovered in chocolate, chewy sweets and wafer slices.

In Filderstadt near Stuttgart, two families found several needles in two milk-hazelnut wafer slices that were invisible from the outside. In Landshut, Bavaria, screws were found in chewy sweets and chocolate bars. A nine-year-old girl in Hannover found a sewing needle in each of three individually wrapped sweets.

Police advised people not to remove foreign objects themselves so that evidence could be preserved. Investigations are continuing in multiple states.