A nurse in Germany who was allegedly opposed to COVID-19 vaccines is being investigated for allegedly giving thousands of people shots of saline instead of the life-saving vaccine, Reuters reported.
A police investigator said, based on statements from witnesses, that there’s “a reasonable suspicion of danger” and that the nurse in question had shared social media posts that “aired skeptical views about vaccines,” according to Reuters.
- During their investigation, police discovered that the nurse was “motivated to oppose the vaccine,” a health official told the press Tuesday, reported CNN.
Authorities in northern Germany appealed to thousands of people to get another shot of COVID-19 vaccine after a police investigation found that a Red Cross nurse may have injected them with a saline solution https://t.co/XMBhuUn32N pic.twitter.com/rfv9pc0U2s
— Reuters (@Reuters) August 11, 2021
German officials are encouraging anyone who may have received the saltwater shot to get vaccinated. Sven Ambrosy — the district administrator in Friesland, Germany, where the alleged shot swap happened — said vaccines were replaced sometime earlier this spring, CNN reported.
- “Today I had the sad duty to inform around 8,600 people who may have been affected that it cannot be ruled out they may have received a saline solution instead of their vaccination at their vaccination appointment,” Ambrose said in a Facebook post, according to CNN.
- “For peace of mind we would recommend people get an additional vaccination,” the administrator said.
Reuters reported a majority of the people who received the saline shot were elderly people — those most susceptible to deadly consequences of pandemic — of Germany’s rural North Sea coast.
- Nearly 3.8 million Germans have tested positive for the coronavirus, which has killed 91,817 people in the country, according to World Health Organization data from Wednesday.