A 20-year-old German man from the state of Hesse has confessed to publishing a huge trove of private data linked to Chancellor Angela Merkel and hundreds of other public figures.
The man, who police did not identify by name, was arrested after his home was raided on Monday and released the following day after admitting to publishing the data via Twitter, the BKA Federal Criminal Police Office said.
The suspect, who said he acted on his own, is a student who lives with his parents and has no previous convictions.
"The accused said the motivation for his actions was irritation at public statements by the affected politicians, journalists and public figures," the BKA said.
He also gave investigators assistance in uncovering crimes committed by others, which helped him avoid pretrial detention, officials said.