A 50-year-old man was fined €4,500 and given a two-and-a-half-year driving ban by a Frankfurt court for breaching security and hugging German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at Frankfurt Airport in 2023. The incident occurred as Scholz was preparing to board a plane after attending the 25th anniversary celebration of the European Central Bank.
The man, who was under the influence of cocaine and had been partying for two days, accidentally joined the Chancellor’s VIP motorcade and drove onto the airport runway. When the convoy stopped, he exited his vehicle, approached Scholz, shook his hand, and embraced him before being detained by security. The man claimed he was mimicking others who were bidding farewell to the Chancellor and expressed regret for his actions in court, describing the experience as both "sweet and sour."
Despite the security breach, Scholz was unharmed and did not feel threatened, according to his spokesperson Wolfgang Büchner. The incident prompted a review of the Chancellor’s security protocols.
This event took place as Scholz’s tenure as Chancellor nears its end, with the German parliament scheduled to elect Friedrich Merz as the new leader in early May, pending coalition approval. The court found the man only partially responsible due to his impaired state but held him accountable for endangering traffic safety and trespassing.
