A blackmailer who sent a parcel bomb to a German pharmacy last week demanded €10 million ($11.8 million) in bitcoin, the German newspaper Bild reports.
The bomb was sent via DHL and received by a pharmacy adjacent to a Christmas market in Potsdam, which was evacuated by police.
The package contained a note addressed to DHL with a QR code for depositing cryptocurrency. The note also threatened to send more bombs if the sum wasn't paid.
Gefahrenhinweis nach Paketbombe in Potsdam. Die Polizei hält es für wahrscheinlich, dass weitere derartige Paketsendungen verschickt werden. Verdächtige Pakete sollten auf keinen Fall geöffnet werden. pic.twitter.com/pQzrSJNg9Q
— tagesschau (@tagesschau) 3 декабря 2017 г.
"A warning after the parcel bomb in Potsdam. The police think it likely that more parcels like this will be sent. Suspicious packages should not be opened under any circumstances," the German news program Tagesschau reported.
The bomb inside the parcel was made of gunpowder from some Polish fireworks, screws and nails. It had a battery-powered detonator which made a hissing sound when opened but failed to ignite.
The police have warned the public to be vigilant and not to open unexpected parcels. It is believed that a parcel bomb recently received by a company in Frankfurt (Oder), also in the state of Brandenburg, was sent by the same perpetrator.
