The children of German steakhouse heiress Christine Block were allegedly kidnapped while watching New Year’s Eve fireworks with their father.
According to German newspapers BildKlara, 13, and Theodor, 10, were watching fireworks at the Caféodora restaurant in Gråsten, Denmark with their dad Stephan Hensel when they were abducted shortly after midnight local time on Monday.
Alamy
Hensel is the ex-husband of Block (49), who is the daughter of steakhouse tycoon Eugen Block, whose fortune is estimated at $330 million, according to German newspaper Hamburger Abendblatt.
According to a British newspaper The TelegraphDanish police said a group of men knocked Hensel to the ground before attacking him and fleeing the scene with the two children in two rental cars with German license plates.
It is not clear whether the kidnappers crossed the Danish border.
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Christina Block at the Butterfly Night charity gala dinner in Hamburg, Germany.
Tristar Media/Getty Images
The publication also reported that Danish police are investigating whether the abduction is connected to a custody battle. Block and Hensel, who moved to Denmark after the couple split, have been fighting a custody battle since their 2018 divorce.
According to the publication, a police official said he was investigating “whether there is a connection between the night’s events and the issue of parental authority.”
German police are also involved in the investigation. A federal police spokesman said Bild“We were involved because of a possible kidnapping.”
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Christina Block and her current partner Gerhard Delling at the German Sports Media Ball.
Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images
According to The Telegraph, Block previously told German media that Hensel “kidnapped” their two youngest children in 2021 after they failed to return to their home in Hamburg after a weekend visit to Denmark. Hensel said the children refused to return to Germany.
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A legal battle ensued between them in Germany and Denmark. According to the publication, the German court system ruled that Hensel should return the children to Block, however, Danish courts ruled that the children should remain with their father and granted Block, whose current partner Gerhard Delling is a famous TV presenter, visitation rights.
There have been no sightings of the children since Tuesday. Authorities in Germany and Denmark did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for additional information.
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