Munich bomb scare: Oktoberfest fairgrounds reopened after security sweep

Munich: The Oktoberfest fairgrounds in Munich were temporarily closed on Wednesday as police conducted a security sweep following a bomb threat linked to a suspect involved in an explosion in northern Munich. Authorities identified the suspect as a 57-year-old German citizen who was believed to have died by suicide near a lake in northern Munich.

Police later reported that the bomb threat related to Oktoberfest was "not confirmed," and the fairgrounds were reopened. The suspect, who lived in Starnberg south of Munich, had carried a backpack containing an explosive device, according to a statement from Bavaria police.

The early morning blast at a residential building in northern Munich, which was deliberately set on fire, appeared to be connected to a domestic dispute, described by Bavarian authorities as a paternity conflict. A letter found near the scene contained a vague threat of explosives related to Oktoberfest.

At the scene, the suspect’s 90-year-old father was found dead, while the suspect's 81-year-old mother and 21-year-old daughter, who holds German-Brazilian dual nationality, were injured and hospitalised. Specialised teams were deployed to defuse booby traps in the building, and images showed a burned-out van at the location.

During the security sweep at Oktoberfest—the world’s largest beer festival attracting up to 6 million visitors annually—police officers, using sniffer dogs and advanced technology, patrolled the nearly empty grounds. Over 500 officers were deployed for the operation.

Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt confirmed the extensive searches, which were precautionary in nature. This year’s Oktoberfest, which began on September 20, is scheduled to conclude on Sunday.

The 1980 neo-Nazi bombing at Oktoberfest, which claimed 13 lives and injured over 200, remains a sombre historical reference, underscoring the festival’s vulnerability to such threats.

With inputs from AP