Person charged with terrorism in connection with arson attack in Copenhagen

The public prosecutor in Copenhagen has decided that a person brought before the Copenhagen City Court today is to be charged with violation of the terrorism provisions in Section 114 of the Danish Criminal Code in connection with an arson attack against a flat in Copenhagen in May 2024.

The resident of the flat has a Jewish background. The person charged has gang affiliations, including links to Loyal to Familia (LTF), which has been banned in Denmark. Since July 2024, the person has been held on remand for arson. The case is being investigated by the Copenhagen Police and PET.

"PET has been warning for some time about an elevated terrorist threat to Jewish and Israeli targets, not least in light of the conflict in Israel and Gaza. In order not to compromise the investigation, I cannot go into specific detail about the case. But if a person in Denmark becomes a terrorist target because of their Jewish background, it is a serious issue. It is also worrying that we are once again dealing with a terrorist case with links to LTF. The investigation is ongoing, and it is too soon to assess whether this is an isolated incident or a more general development in the terrorist threat," said Finn Borch Andersen, Director General of PET.

The case does not give rise to changing the general assessment of the terrorist threat to Denmark, which remains at the level of significant, i.e. level four out of five. According to the most recent "Assessment of the terrorist threat to Denmark" published by the Centre for Terror Analysis (CTA) at PET, the terrorist threat is already elevated within the current level due to the conflict in Israel and Gaza.

As a result of the elevated terrorist threat, PET has already introduced a number of security measures, such as operative recommendations for the police focusing on more extensive protection of Israeli and Jewish interests in Denmark.

Based on the specific case, PET is planning further initiatives, including safety-enhancing efforts surrounding Jewish interests in Denmark in cooperation with the Jewish Community in Denmark.

"The current case does not change the overall threat assessment, and all Danes should go on with their lives as usual. We are closely monitoring the situation and will implement the security measures that we deem necessary and relevant. We will continue our close dialogue with the Jewish Community in Denmark about the current situation and any measures that may enhance people's safety," Finn Borch Andersen said.

Due to the ongoing investigation of the case, PET is not able to comment further at this stage.

As always, we encourage all citizens to contact the police on telephone number 114 if they experience something that may be relevant to the police or to security.