'Violent' explosion rocks Danish tax office

Danish police said Wednesday foul play was involved in a powerful explosion that rocked the national tax agency in Copenhagen, causing severe damage to the building's exterior but no serious injuries.

The cause of the blast, which occurred Tuesday around 10:00 pm (2000 GMT) at the agency's headquarters in the capital's Osterbro district, was not immediately known, Copenhagen police said.

But investigators were treating the incident as a criminal act.

"It's something someone has done on purpose," Copenhagen police inspector Jorgen Bergen Skov, told a press briefing on Wednesday, adding that it was too early to say what the motive could have been.

Investigators and bomb sniffer dogs were at the scene on Wednesday, police said.

The blast had smashed windows and torn apart the front of the building. One person was hit by flying fragments and sought treatment at a hospital.

Two people were inside the agency at the time of the explosion but escaped injury, a police spokeswoman told AFP, adding that employees have been asked to work from home on Wednesday.

Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has described the incident as a "deliberate act", but said it was too early to speak of a "terror attack".

"We are talking about a serious crime and a very violent explosion, so it is a wonder no one was seriously injured," Frederiksen told reporters.

Danish Tax Minister Morten Bodskov told the Ritzau news agency it was "pretty obvious the facade has been blown up" deliberately, calling it a "totally unacceptable act".

"Copenhagen police are conducting an investigation, but if anyone knows anything they should come forward," he said.