German bank chief targeted by letter bomb

A suspicious package addressed to Deutsche Bank chief Josef Ackermann contained a fully functional bomb, German authorities say.

The bomb was intercepted after a routine X-ray screening on Wednesday in the mailroom of the bank’s Frankfurt headquarters.

Experts deactivated the bomb but the authorities refused to give any further details because of a continuing investigation.

The New York Police Department said it had been alerted and sent patrols to the bank’s offices in the city “solely as a precaution”.

A spokesman said the return address on the letter was the European Central Bank - the governing body for the eurozone, which has its headquarters just across the park from Deutsche Bank in Frankfurt.

The Swiss-born Ackermann, 63, was awarded a negative prize by an anti-lobby group on Wednesday for allegedly cutting deals with German Chancellor Angela Merkel regarding efforts earlier this year to save Greece from bankruptcy.

Deutsche Bank rejected the charges.