A judge at Retten på Frederiksberg has released a 22-year-old man who was shot by police in Tingbjerg in Copenhagen over the weekend. The decision came after new video footage of the shooting was shown in court on Tuesday.
The release was reported on August 11, 2026, by DR, citing defense lawyer Martin Due Lomholdt. The 22-year-old was sitting in a rental car when he was shot by police in the Tingbjerg neighborhood.
Over the weekend, the man was not able to appear in court himself. At the duty court at Københavns Byret, a judge found that the preliminary material from the police was sufficient to remand him in custody in absentia.
The case was later transferred to Retten på Frederiksberg. At Tuesday’s hearing there, Martin Due Lomholdt presented a video sequence that had not been shown at the first hearing, according to DR.
The sequence shows the shooting from a different angle than the footage presented earlier. Per the defense lawyer, the judge gave weight to that video, as well as to the explanation the 22-year-old gave in court on Tuesday.
On the footage shown in court, the officer who fired at the car appears to shoot while the vehicle is moving away from him. DR notes that the man left court a free man, because the prosecution chose not to appeal the decision to Østre Landsret.
Police watchdog investigating the shooting
Den Uafhængige Politiklagemyndighed, the Independent Police Complaints Authority, is investigating the case. The purpose is to clarify whether there is a basis for a criminal case against the police officers involved.
According to the authority’s own description of its mandate, it investigates criminal cases involving police personnel and handles complaints about police conduct. Its procedure page states that it examines material such as witness statements and video surveillance.
The authority has not published findings in the Tingbjerg case. No charges against the officers have been announced.
Why the decision came now
The immediate trigger was Tuesday’s renewed hearing at Retten på Frederiksberg. There, the defense introduced video evidence that had not been part of the material at the initial weekend hearing, as reported by DR.
The 22-year-old’s own account, given in person for the first time, also formed part of the judge’s assessment. His release took effect once the prosecution declined to bring the ruling before Østre Landsret.
Martin Due Lomholdt is the only defense lawyer named in the reporting on the case. DR’s account of the hearing is based on his description of the proceedings.
