A dramatic police operation in Oberösterreich, Austria, concluded with an unexpected twist after a reported knife attack turned out to be a fabrication.

On Saturday evening, a 40-year-old man called emergency services claiming he had been attacked with a knife at the St.

Pantaleon train station.

This prompted a large-scale search involving helicopters and drones.

However, during questioning on Sunday, the man admitted to inflicting the injuries on himself, revealing that there was no attacker.

Initially, the man had described his assailant as a non-German speaking individual from the Arab region, which led to an intensive search.

The police have since confirmed that the alleged attack was entirely fictitious, and the search has been called off.