Needle attacks on Halloween sweets across nine federal states
Police investigating nationwide over tampered confectionery. Children found needles, screws and metal parts in individually packaged sweets.
Tampered sweets discovered across multiple federal states
Following Halloween activities last weekend, families across nine federal states have reported dangerous metal objects in sweets. According to sueddeutsche.de, needles, screws and metal pins were found in chocolate bars, chewing sweets, gummy bears and wafer bars. Police are investigating in Baden-Württemberg, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Bavaria, Thuringia, Lower Saxony, Bremen, Schleswig-Holstein, North Rhine-Westphalia and three districts of Saxony-Anhalt. One case was also reported from Austria.
In Filderstadt near Stuttgart, two families found several needles in milk hazelnut wafers that were not visible from the outside. One mother had searched her daughter's collection with a magnet after reports of tampered sweets. In the Bavarian town of Landshut, screws were found in chewing sweets and chocolate bars. A nine-year-old girl from Hanover found a sewing needle in each of three individually packaged sweets. Police reported further needle discoveries from Nuremberg, Neuburg, the Thuringian towns of Leinefelde-Worbis and Herbsleben. In the district of Konstanz, individually packaged wafer bars contained metallic foreign objects.
In Essen, a father noticed suspicious puncture holes in the packaging of a chocolate bar his 13-year-old son received. Hidden in the bar, he found a sharp needle. At other locations in Essen, metal pins were discovered in a chocolate bar and in a packet of gummy bears.
One injury case and unclear circumstances
To date, police have reported injuries from the discovered foreign objects in one case: in Lower Saxony, a girl was injured by a tampered chocolate bar. In all other cases, families noticed the metal parts before the children ate the sweets. Sharp or pointed objects can cause severe internal injuries if swallowed – such as injuries to the oesophagus, stomach or intestines – and are potentially life-threatening.
The circumstances behind the tampering remain unclear. In many places, police are assuming that the needles were deliberately inserted into the sweets. Who is responsible and what motive might be involved remains open. Equally unclear is whether there is any connection between the discoveries in different cities. Some police departments are investigating on suspicion of attempted grievous bodily harm.
Find from supermarket at Lidl
In one case, a tampered bar did not come from trick-or-treating but from a retail store. According to police, a woman in the Lower Saxony town of Garbsen reported buying a chocolate bar at the supermarket discount chain Lidl and discovering a sewing needle in it the same evening. No abnormalities were apparent on the packaging or the sweet that would have indicated tampering.
Lidl stated that it is in close contact with the investigating authorities and its supplier and is taking the matter very seriously. Regarding causes and further background, the company provided no comment, citing the ongoing investigation.
Historical cases and current peculiarity
Metal objects in Halloween sweets have been found in previous years. In 2025, a mother in Central Franconia found a two-centimetre nail in her daughter's sweet. However, the current clustering of cases throughout the country is extremely striking. To what extent a trend on social media might be behind this remains completely unclear.
Safety measures and investigation challenges
Suspicious sweets should not be eaten, but should be kept together with their packaging and reported to the local police station. Foreign objects should, if possible, not be removed by the person who found them, so as to preserve any traces. For investigations, information from families and traces on the sweet, packaging and foreign object may be important – a difficult task since Halloween collectors often no longer remember later where each bar came from.
Many police departments warn against carelessly consuming the sweets and advise checking them. Essen police state: "Please check the sweets before consumption for possible puncture marks and contact the police immediately if you make any suspicious findings." However, an unobtrusive wrapper is still no guarantee – the metallic objects are not always recognisable from the outside.
The authorities are simultaneously warning against excessive concern. Bad Segeberg police emphasise: "Not every headache or every instance of nausea must be attributed to the consumption of possibly tampered sweets." The Federal Association "More Safety for Children" advises that parents should seek immediate medical help if there is a suspicion that a child has swallowed a sewing needle or other foreign object.
Source: Google News DE — Crime (de)