Authorities in north Germany have asked more than 8,000 people to get repeat COVID vaccinations because a nurse is suspected of having injected saline instead of vaccine in many cases.

Police are investigating the nurse’s actions at a vaccination center in Friesland, near the North Sea coast.

Initially just 6 people were believed to have received the harmless salt solution there in March and April.

Many of those affected were aged over 70 – a high-risk group in the pandemic.

Inspector Peter Beer, quoted by Süddeutsche Zeitung, said the 40-year-old woman had been sharing “corona-critical information” on social media, criticising the government’s restrictions aimed at curbing the virus’s spread.

Regional broadcaster NDR says 8,557 people have been asked to go back for repeat vaccinations, and so far about 3,600 new appointments have been confirmed.