Today in Denmark: A roundup of the news on Tuesday
Man detained by police after initial court hearing in case of kidnapped girl, former Danske Bank staff charged with money laundering huge sums and other news from Denmark on Tuesday.
Man held by police for suspected kidnapping and rape of girl
A 32-year-old man has been remanded in police custody until May 11th for the suspected kidnapping and sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl, the District Court in Næstved ruled yesterday.
In a case that dominated the Danish press over the weekend, the young girl disappeared after finishing her newspaper delivery round in the town of Kirkerup. Her bicycle, bag and phone were discovered on the delivery route before she was later found at an address in neighbouring Korsør 27 hours later.
In its decision to detain the 32-year-old, the court noted that a possible accomplice may still be at large and that there is good reason to believe the man is guilty of the charges against him.
He is suspected of kidnapping the girl and raping her along with other types of sexual assault, which were committed using violence or threats of violence, according to reports of the charge sheet by news wire Ritzau.
Ex-Danske Bank staff charged with money laundering billions in Estonia
Six former Danske Bank staff have been charged with laundering dizzying sums of $1.6 billion and six million euros at the Estonian branch of Denmark's biggest lender, prosecutors said on Monday according to news wire AFP.
They are accused of "providing money laundering services for a sum of at least $1,611,963,711 and 6,074,878 euros" between 2007 and 2015, Estonian prosecutors said.
"Assets worth about 10 million euros, allegedly obtained through money laundering, were seized", the prosecutors added.
The six "deliberately concealed" the true owners of the money transferred to the bank's Estonian accounts, which was "probably of criminal origin," the prosecutors said.
Mink farmer gets suspended sentence for illegal breeding
A mink breeder located in West Jutland has been handed a fine and suspended prison sentence for keeping the animals while a national ban on the trade was in place.
The breeder was prosecuted for continuing to breed minks while a ban was in place due to Covid-19 restrictions.
The breeder, based in West Jutland village Thyholm, was found to have 126 minks at his farm during an inspection in December 2021.
During the trial, the farmer claimed the animals weren’t his and that he was looking after them for someone else, but a vet from the Danish Veterinary and Food Agency (Fødevarestyrelsen) said that he was in no doubt that breeding was at play.
“They were kept in cages that millions of other minks were kept in. The cages were fastened with plastic strips so there was nothing to suggest this was pets,” he said.
Copenhagen Zoo gives up on panda mating
Attempts at Copenhagen Zoo to encourage two panda bears loaned to the zoo from China to mate have proven fruitless for another year.
A gate between the pandas’ two enclosures was closed on Monday afternoon, meaning they no longer have the opportunity to mate and have cubs.
Zoological director Mads Frost Bertelsen told news wire Ritzau that zookeepers in Copenhagen had “unfortunately faced the fact there won’t be any mating this year, either” in reference to the fact that repeated attempts to get the pandas to reproduce have been unsuccessful.
The female panda is now out of heat, Ritzau writes.
The two animals were unable mate because they “are inexperienced when it comes to panda language”, according to Bertelsen.
Another attempt is expected next year for the pandas, who are loaned to Copenhagen Zoo from 2019 until 2034.
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Man held by police for suspected kidnapping and rape of girl
A 32-year-old man has been remanded in police custody until May 11th for the suspected kidnapping and sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl, the District Court in Næstved ruled yesterday.
In a case that dominated the Danish press over the weekend, the young girl disappeared after finishing her newspaper delivery round in the town of Kirkerup. Her bicycle, bag and phone were discovered on the delivery route before she was later found at an address in neighbouring Korsør 27 hours later.
In its decision to detain the 32-year-old, the court noted that a possible accomplice may still be at large and that there is good reason to believe the man is guilty of the charges against him.
He is suspected of kidnapping the girl and raping her along with other types of sexual assault, which were committed using violence or threats of violence, according to reports of the charge sheet by news wire Ritzau.
Ex-Danske Bank staff charged with money laundering billions in Estonia
Six former Danske Bank staff have been charged with laundering dizzying sums of $1.6 billion and six million euros at the Estonian branch of Denmark's biggest lender, prosecutors said on Monday according to news wire AFP.
They are accused of "providing money laundering services for a sum of at least $1,611,963,711 and 6,074,878 euros" between 2007 and 2015, Estonian prosecutors said.
"Assets worth about 10 million euros, allegedly obtained through money laundering, were seized", the prosecutors added.
The six "deliberately concealed" the true owners of the money transferred to the bank's Estonian accounts, which was "probably of criminal origin," the prosecutors said.
Mink farmer gets suspended sentence for illegal breeding
A mink breeder located in West Jutland has been handed a fine and suspended prison sentence for keeping the animals while a national ban on the trade was in place.
The breeder was prosecuted for continuing to breed minks while a ban was in place due to Covid-19 restrictions.
The breeder, based in West Jutland village Thyholm, was found to have 126 minks at his farm during an inspection in December 2021.
During the trial, the farmer claimed the animals weren’t his and that he was looking after them for someone else, but a vet from the Danish Veterinary and Food Agency (Fødevarestyrelsen) said that he was in no doubt that breeding was at play.
“They were kept in cages that millions of other minks were kept in. The cages were fastened with plastic strips so there was nothing to suggest this was pets,” he said.
Copenhagen Zoo gives up on panda mating
Attempts at Copenhagen Zoo to encourage two panda bears loaned to the zoo from China to mate have proven fruitless for another year.
A gate between the pandas’ two enclosures was closed on Monday afternoon, meaning they no longer have the opportunity to mate and have cubs.
Zoological director Mads Frost Bertelsen told news wire Ritzau that zookeepers in Copenhagen had “unfortunately faced the fact there won’t be any mating this year, either” in reference to the fact that repeated attempts to get the pandas to reproduce have been unsuccessful.
The female panda is now out of heat, Ritzau writes.
The two animals were unable mate because they “are inexperienced when it comes to panda language”, according to Bertelsen.
Another attempt is expected next year for the pandas, who are loaned to Copenhagen Zoo from 2019 until 2034.
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