German prosecutors have issued an arrest warrant for a Ukrainian diver suspected of involvement in the 2022 Nord Stream gas pipeline explosion, as reported by German media on Wednesday.
The diver, identified as Volodymyr Z., is believed to have been part of a team that planted explosives on the pipelines. The arrest warrant was issued in June, with his last known address reportedly being in Poland.
Polish authorities confirmed on Wednesday that they had been informed of the arrest warrant by Berlin. However, they were unable to apprehend the suspect.
“Ultimately, Volodymyr Z. was not detained because, at the beginning of July, he left Polish territory, crossing the Polish-Ukrainian border,” said Anna Adamiak, a spokeswoman for Poland’s National Public Prosecutor’s Office, as quoted by Reuters.
Adamiak explained that Polish border guards had “no knowledge and no grounds to detain Volodymyr Z.” because German authorities had not listed him in the international database of wanted persons.
Sweden’s Expressen daily identified the man as 44-year-old Volodymyr Zhuravlyov, who is suspected of “anti-constitutional sabotage and causing an explosion.” German investigators believe he was one of the divers who planted the explosives on the Nord Stream pipelines.
The Russian Telegram channel Shot, which is believed to have ties to Russia’s security services, claimed that Zhuravlyov had previously served in the Ukrainian army and had unsuccessfully attempted to obtain a Russian passport in 2009.
German investigators have also reportedly identified two other Ukrainians, a man and a woman, who are suspected of being divers involved in the attack. However, no arrest warrants have been issued for them yet.
In September 2022, four major gas leaks were discovered on the Nord Stream pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm. Seismic institutes recorded two underwater explosions shortly before the leaks were detected.
The pipelines had been a focal point of geopolitical tensions, with Russia suspected of cutting gas supplies to Europe in retaliation for Western sanctions imposed over its invasion of Ukraine.
Although the leaks occurred in international waters, two were within Denmark’s exclusive economic zone and two in Sweden’s. The pipelines were not operational at the time of the explosions, but they still contained gas, which leaked into the water and atmosphere.
Denmark, Sweden, and Germany each launched investigations into the explosions. However, Denmark and Sweden have since closed their investigations.
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