World · Europe · 9 hrs ago
Police investigate tampered Halloween sweets in two German states
Children found metal needles in Halloween sweets in Thuringia after collecting treats in Wintzingerode, part of Leinefelde-Worbis.
Police believe the sweets may have been deliberately tampered with and are investigating suspected attempted serious bodily harm.
Officers have not established which homes the affected sweets came from.
In Appenheim, Rhineland-Palatinate, a nine-year-old found two tiny magnets attached to a chewy sweet while checking his haul.
No one was hurt, but swallowing several magnets can cause severe internal injuries.
Police are investigating both cases and urged parents to check sweets before children eat them.
Similar discoveries have been reported in Germany in previous years, including razor blades found in children’s Halloween sweets in Kiel in 2025.
Children found metal needles in Halloween sweets in Wintzingerode, Thuringia, and two small magnets attached to a chewy sweet in Appenheim, Rhineland-Palatinate.
Police in both states have opened investigations.
Thuringian police suspect the sweets were deliberately tampered with to cause injuries.
No one was reported injured in the Appenheim case.
Police urged parents to check collected sweets carefully before children eat them.
- Who
- Children who collected Halloween sweets found the objects. Police in Thuringia and Rhineland-Palatinate are investigating.
- What
- Metal needles were found in sweets in Wintzingerode, and two magnets were found attached to a chewy sweet in Appenheim.
- When
- During Halloween night, on Saturday evening.
- Where
- Wintzingerode in the Eichsfeld district of Thuringia, and Appenheim in the Mainz-Bingen district of Rhineland-Palatinate.
- Why
- Thuringian police suspect the sweets were deliberately prepared to cause injuries. The motive in either case is not stated.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Children in Wintzingerode found metal needles in collected sweets, and a boy in Appenheim found two magnets attached to a chewy sweet.
Police in both states opened investigations and urged parents to check sweets before they are eaten.
- Wintzingerode
- Metal needles found in Halloween sweets
- Appenheim
- Two magnets, each about 2 millimetres in diameter, attached to a chewy sweet
- Injuries
- No one was reported injured in the Appenheim case
- Thuringia investigation
- Police suspect deliberate tampering intended to cause injuries
- Police advice
- Check collected sweets carefully before eating them