Polish man who attacked Danish PM Frederiksen remanded in 12-day custody

A 39-year-old man from Poland who attacked Danish Prime MinisterMette Frederiksen was remandedin custody for 12 days on Saturday (June 8).

He was under the influence of alcohol and drugs at the time and was unaware that the victim was Denmark's prime minister,Reuters news agencyreported citing police.

"There is nothing to indicate a political motive," the man's lawyer told a Copenhagen court on Saturday. The Polish foreign ministry was told by Danish authorities that the man had been staying in Denmark for some time.

Speaking to local media, Copenhagen police inspector Triner Moller said, "We see it as a single, spontaneous act, and we do not currently have it as a guiding hypothesis in our investigation that it was a planned attack on the prime minister."

The attack

On Friday, the man assaulted Prime Minister Frederiksenin a Copenhagen square. The attacker was subsequently arrested by authoritiesand an investigation waslaunched, said thepolice.

According toFrederiksen's office,she suffereda minor whiplash injury from the assault.

Several European Union (EU) leaders condemned Friday's incident, which happened just three weeks after Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico was seriously injured in an assassination attempt.

The incident also happened two days beforeDanes headed to the polls in the EU elections.

'Saddened and shaken'

On Saturday,PMFrederiksen told local media, "Thank you for the many, many, many greetings with support and backing. It's incredibly touching."

"I am saddened and shaken by the episode yesterday but am otherwise safe. For once, I need peace. Both for body and soul. I need to be with my family and need to be myself for a bit," Frederiksen added.

(With inputs from agencies)