Man held as Germany thwarts ricin attack

German authorities have thwarted a plot by a Tunisian man who created the deadly toxin ricin using castor bean seeds and planned to use the poison in an Islamic extremist attack, federal prosecutors said.

Sief Allah H, whose last name was not given in line with German privacy laws, was taken into custody on Tuesday during a raid on his apartment in Cologne.

The 29-year-old was formally arrested on Wednesday after a judge reviewed the evidence.

Authorities are still investigating how the suspect planned to use the toxin, but said he was working on a “biological weapon” attack in Germany.

The suspect is believed to have begun procuring material online in midmay, prosecutors said. He succeeded in creating the toxin this month.