Gil Ofarim posted a video online last October alleging he received antisemitic abuse from a hotel employee. Now prosecutors have accused him of making false claims about the incident.
Jewish musician Gil Ofarim is facing charges of wrongful suspicion and defamation after he alleged antisemitic abuse from a hotel employee last year, German prosecutors announced on Thursday.
Extensive investigations found "no evidence" to support Ofarim's claims and concluded that the incident had not occurred as described by the singer, the public prosecutor's office in Leipzig said.
Last year, Ofarim posted a video to social media, alleging staff at the Westin Hotel in Leipzig ordered him to put away a Star of David pendant hanging on a chain around his neck.
At the time, the video sparked outrage across Germany and especially among the Jewish community, with people protesting in solidarity with Ofarim and standing against antisemitism.
Prosecutors said the investigation against the hotel worker had now been dropped, adding that the musician had posted the video "in the knowledge it was false and would have defamatory consequences for the hotel employees."
Ofarim's version of events came under scrutiny when footage from a security camera, published by German media in the weeks after the incident, did not appear to back up his account.
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