German Authorities Arrest Ukrainian Suspect in Nord Stream Pipeline Sabotage in Croatia

Croatian police arrested a Ukrainian national, Vladimir Z., in Pula on August 19, 2026, based on a European arrest warrant issued by German authorities. The German Federal Prosecutor's Office suspects him of involvement in the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines in September 2022.

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This morning, August 19, 2026, the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office had the Ukrainian citizen Volodymyr Z. arrested in Pula (Croatia) by local police forces under the coordination of the Directorate of Police Zagreb, in execution of a European arrest warrant issued on June 3, 2024, by an investigating judge of the Federal Court.

According to the arrest warrant, Vladimir Z. is a trained diver who allegedly participated in the dives where explosives were planted on the pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm. He is accused of complicity in causing explosions, unconstitutional sabotage, and destruction of property. The indictment states that he and his accomplices departed from Rostock, Germany, on a sailboat that had been rented by intermediaries using forged identity documents.

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The above-mentioned person is seriously suspected of complicity in causing explosions (Article 308 Paragraph 1 of the German Criminal Code), unconstitutional sabotage (Article 88 Paragraph 1 and 3), and destruction of buildings and structures (Article 305 Paragraph 1).

The explosions occurred on September 26, 2022, causing significant damage to both pipelines. Nord Stream 1 was operational at the time, transporting Russian natural gas to Germany, while Nord Stream 2 was not yet in operation. German prosecutors have also indicted Serhiy K., believed to be a key figure in the operation, on June 30, 2026, before the Hanseatic Higher Regional Court in Hamburg.

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In essence, the arrest warrant states the following accusations: Volodymyr Z. is a trained diver. He was part of a group of individuals – around the separately prosecuted Serhiy K. – who in September 2022 placed explosives on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines near the island of Bornholm.

This arrest follows a previous detention of a suspect in Poland in 2025, who was later released after Poland rejected a German extradition request. The Ukrainian suspect is expected to be brought before a German investigating judge upon his extradition from Croatia.

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The suspect participated in the necessary dives. For this purpose, he and his co-perpetrators left Rostock by sailboat. Intermediaries had previously rented a yacht from a German company using forged identity cards.