A Polish man pleaded not guilty to assaulting Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, claiming he was too drunk to remember punching the leader, the BBC reported Tuesday.
Frederiksen sustained minor neck and shoulder injuries from the assault in June, and said she was “shaken” by the assault, the outlet reported. The 39-year-old Polish suspect told a Danish court that he was having “a bad” day at the time of the assault and that he suffered from memory loss induced by alcohol, according to the BBC. (RELATED: Parents Whip Guns Out On Man Who Allegedly Broke Into Home, Raided Change Jar For Personal Booze Fest)
Polish man ‘too drunk to remember’ punching Danish PM https://t.co/aXINpRMMT1
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) August 6, 2024
“I’m standing face to face with Mrs. Prime Minister, (then) I can’t remember anything else until I am arrested,” the suspect testified, according to the Agence France-Presse (AFP).
One of the prime minister’s bodyguards also testified in court, alleging that the suspect said “something incomprehensible” to the prime minister before landing a “hard punch,” the AFP reported.
“He [the suspect] says something incomprehensible to her [the prime minister]. As he passes her, he gives her a hard punch with his fist on her shoulder,” the bodyguard told the court.
Copenhagen police previously said the suspect’s alleged assault was not politically motivated, the BBC reported.
The man pleaded guilty to separate charges, such as indecent exposure and fraud, stemming from unrelated incidents, the outlet reported. He faces a potential prison sentence and deportation.
Frederiksen has led Denmark since 2019.
