Inside Denmark: Worry-free Crown Prince Christian and beware of the 'ethics police'
The heir to the Danish throne graduates, a new version of an old scam and verdict is reached in grim trial that gripped Denmark. Our weekly column Inside Denmark takes a look at what the country has been talking about this week.
Crown Prince Christian gets to act like a teenager
You may have noticed them – they’re hard to miss at this time of year. Upper secondary school (gymnasium) graduates, walking round towns across the country wearing carefree expressions and white hats, which they are awarded after they finish their final exams. It’s a sight that can evoke memories of youthful exuberance and the feeling of having your whole life in front of you.
Try saying tillykke (congratulations) next time you pass a youngster wearing one of the hats – it’s a much-loved custom which breaks with reserved Danish norms and will in all probability get you a proud tak! (thanks!) back from the person who receives your well-wishes.
Among the class of 2024 is the next in line to the Danish throne, Crown Prince Christian.
Wholesome images broadcast by DR show the prince taking a relaxed wander around the grounds of his school and hugging classmates after his exams.
READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: Why do Danish school leavers wear white caps?
Don’t answer the phone to the ‘Ethics Police’, the real police warn
Phishing scams are a serious problem in Denmark and have been for some time.
Emails, phone calls and text messages impersonating the courts, police, and postal service Post Danmark (which hasn’t existed since 2009) are among the variations of the now well-known scams. These involve criminals trying to trick their victims into handing over personal information like banking details or, in Denmark specifically, their MitID digital ID.
There have even been scams specifically targeting foreigners who live in the country.
Yet the scammers keep coming up with new and original approaches.
Police in both Funen and Zealand this week said they had received reports of calls which appeared phone screens as being from the “Ethics Police” or Etik Politiet as it was written in (incorrect) Danish.
The phone number used in the scam was less creative: 12345678.
Whatever an ethics police might actually be, there’s no such thing in Denmark.
“Don’t answer and don’t call back. This is NOT the police,” a police tweet on social media X stated.
It can be tempting to deride the scams and the often poor style in which they’re written, but the matter is serious and can affect anyone, police say – not just those who are less tech-savvy.
Scams of this type are classed by police as IT-related crime. Some 35,000 reports were filed in the category last year, up 30 percent compared to 2022.
“It’s important to stress that the police, banks and public authorities would never, at any time, ask members of the public to hand over personal information, including [bank] card and MitID information, over the phone or by email or SMS,” police special crime unit NSK advises.
If in doubt, ask for a second opinion from someone you trust before clicking a link or opening a message, they also urge.
Conviction in murder case that haunted Denmark for years
The most-talked about news story in Denmark this week was by some distance the trial and eventual conviction of 33-year-old Philip Patrick Westh for murder, abduction and violent rape or attempted counts of those crimes.
This grim trial was high-profile, partly because it resulted in closure on two missing person cases which both became major news stories at the time they happened, but weren’t linked to each other until after the suspect’s arrest.
The first case – the disappearance and death of 17-year-old Emilie Meng in 2016 – had been an unsolved mystery until last year, when police tracked down and arrested Westh after he kidnapped and raped a 13-year-old girl in the small town of Kirkerup. The case has since been referred to as Kirkerup-sagen or “The Kirkerup Case”.
He was also convicted in relation to a third case, an attempt to kidnap and rape a 15-year-old in November 2022.
Westh was given a lifetime prison sentence after the conviction, which he has appealed.
As a news story, it perhaps doesn’t tell us much about Denmark – apart from that shocking crimes happen here and that missing person cases can become high-profile ones. But the conclusion of the trial does bring an end of sorts to this particular case, the likes of which are thankfully rare in Denmark.
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Crown Prince Christian gets to act like a teenager
You may have noticed them – they’re hard to miss at this time of year. Upper secondary school (gymnasium) graduates, walking round towns across the country wearing carefree expressions and white hats, which they are awarded after they finish their final exams. It’s a sight that can evoke memories of youthful exuberance and the feeling of having your whole life in front of you.
Try saying tillykke (congratulations) next time you pass a youngster wearing one of the hats – it’s a much-loved custom which breaks with reserved Danish norms and will in all probability get you a proud tak! (thanks!) back from the person who receives your well-wishes.
Among the class of 2024 is the next in line to the Danish throne, Crown Prince Christian.
Wholesome images broadcast by DR show the prince taking a relaxed wander around the grounds of his school and hugging classmates after his exams.
READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: Why do Danish school leavers wear white caps?
Don’t answer the phone to the ‘Ethics Police’, the real police warn
Phishing scams are a serious problem in Denmark and have been for some time.
Emails, phone calls and text messages impersonating the courts, police, and postal service Post Danmark (which hasn’t existed since 2009) are among the variations of the now well-known scams. These involve criminals trying to trick their victims into handing over personal information like banking details or, in Denmark specifically, their MitID digital ID.
There have even been scams specifically targeting foreigners who live in the country.
Yet the scammers keep coming up with new and original approaches.
Police in both Funen and Zealand this week said they had received reports of calls which appeared phone screens as being from the “Ethics Police” or Etik Politiet as it was written in (incorrect) Danish.
The phone number used in the scam was less creative: 12345678.
Whatever an ethics police might actually be, there’s no such thing in Denmark.
“Don’t answer and don’t call back. This is NOT the police,” a police tweet on social media X stated.
It can be tempting to deride the scams and the often poor style in which they’re written, but the matter is serious and can affect anyone, police say – not just those who are less tech-savvy.
Scams of this type are classed by police as IT-related crime. Some 35,000 reports were filed in the category last year, up 30 percent compared to 2022.
“It’s important to stress that the police, banks and public authorities would never, at any time, ask members of the public to hand over personal information, including [bank] card and MitID information, over the phone or by email or SMS,” police special crime unit NSK advises.
If in doubt, ask for a second opinion from someone you trust before clicking a link or opening a message, they also urge.
Conviction in murder case that haunted Denmark for years
The most-talked about news story in Denmark this week was by some distance the trial and eventual conviction of 33-year-old Philip Patrick Westh for murder, abduction and violent rape or attempted counts of those crimes.
This grim trial was high-profile, partly because it resulted in closure on two missing person cases which both became major news stories at the time they happened, but weren’t linked to each other until after the suspect’s arrest.
The first case – the disappearance and death of 17-year-old Emilie Meng in 2016 – had been an unsolved mystery until last year, when police tracked down and arrested Westh after he kidnapped and raped a 13-year-old girl in the small town of Kirkerup. The case has since been referred to as Kirkerup-sagen or “The Kirkerup Case”.
He was also convicted in relation to a third case, an attempt to kidnap and rape a 15-year-old in November 2022.
Westh was given a lifetime prison sentence after the conviction, which he has appealed.
As a news story, it perhaps doesn’t tell us much about Denmark – apart from that shocking crimes happen here and that missing person cases can become high-profile ones. But the conclusion of the trial does bring an end of sorts to this particular case, the likes of which are thankfully rare in Denmark.
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