German police arrest suspected power grid saboteur after manhunt

A 48-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of carrying out a spate of sabotage attacks on Germany's electricity grid after spending several days on the run.

The suspect was carrying explosives when he was detained near the Weisweiler power plant in western Germany on Tuesday, police in Cologne said.

A tent in nearby undergrowth was also found to be rigged with further explosives, they added.

The suspect, named by German media as Daniel V, is believed to have written letters claiming responsibility for the attacks, which have taken place in Brandenburg and Saxony in the east as well North Rhine-Westphalia in the west.

Police said explosives found during the arrest were being examined by a bomb disposal expert, while officers were checking to see if any undiscovered devices had been set up in the surrounding area.

Prior to the suspect's arrest on Tuesday, police said they had found several launch devices on high-voltage lines near the Weisweiler plant on Monday afternoon, alongside "another confession letter".

A series of incidents across the grid in the last week have followed a similar pattern, with rockets used to shoot wires across high-voltage cables in order to cause short circuits.

The attacks have led to power-generating units at some plants being temporarily taken off the grid.