Second Ukrainian suspect arrested in Croatia over 2022 Nord Stream pipeline sabotage
German federal prosecutors confirmed that Ukrainian diver Vladimir Z. was detained in Pula on a European warrant and faces extradition to Germany over the Baltic Sea blasts.
Arrest in Croatian coastal resort
On Wednesday morning, Croatian police in Pula arrested Ukrainian national Vladimir Z. on the basis of a European arrest warrant issued by Germany. German federal prosecutors in Karlsruhe identified him as a trained scuba diver suspected of directly participating in the September 2022 bombing of the Nord Stream natural gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea. The suspect will be extradited from Croatia to Germany and brought before an investigating judge at the Federal Court of Justice, who will decide on his pre-trial detention.
German prosecutors detailed the formal allegations in a statement released after the arrest in Pula.
Vladimir Z. is strongly suspected of having caused an explosion as part of an organized group, committed an act of unconstitutional sabotage and destruction of infrastructure.
Deep-sea sabotage operation
The investigation connects Vladimir Z. to a seven-person commando group led by former Ukrainian military officer Serhii K. According to prosecutors, the team chartered the sailing yacht Andromeda from a German company in Rostock using forged identity documents through intermediaries. Operating in the Baltic Sea near the Danish island of Bornholm, the crew conducted deep-sea dives to depths of approximately 80 meters to affix military-grade high-performance explosives directly to the pipes. Investigators later recovered explosive residue, fingerprints, and DNA matches aboard the Andromeda.
The four underwater detonations on 26 September 2022 ruptured three of the four conduits that made up Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2. Nord Stream 1 had served as a primary transit conduit for Russian gas exports to Germany before Moscow halted flows, while Nord Stream 2 was completed but never entered commercial operation.
- Underwater explosions damage three of four Nord Stream pipelines near Bornholm
- Vladimir Z. evades German arrest in Poland and flees to Ukraine
- Suspected leader Serhii K. is arrested while on vacation in Rimini, Italy
- Polish court rejects Germany's extradition request for Vladimir Z.
- German prosecutors indict Serhii K. in Hamburg on sabotage charges
- Croatian police arrest Vladimir Z. in Pula on a European warrant
Previous evasions and legal disputes
German investigators had pursued Vladimir Z. across multiple European countries prior to the operation in Croatia. German authorities sought his arrest in Poland during the summer of 2024, but he fled into Ukraine inside a vehicle belonging to the Ukrainian military attaché. When he returned to Poland in autumn 2025, Polish police detained him, but a Polish court rejected Germany's extradition request and released him from custody. The decision not to surrender the suspect prompted diplomatic friction between Berlin and Warsaw.
Croatian authorities in Pula executed the arrest on Wednesday in coordination with police directorate headquarters in Zagreb, taking the suspect into custody without incident at the seaside resort.
Indictment of alleged ringleader
The arrest of Vladimir Z. is the second apprehension in Germany's ongoing investigation into the Baltic Sea blasts. In August 2025, Italian police arrested the suspected operation leader, Serhii K., while he was vacationing with his family in Rimini. He was extradited to Germany in autumn 2025 and remains in pre-trial detention in Hamburg.
On 30 June 2026, federal prosecutors filed formal charges against Serhii K. before the Hanseatic Higher Regional Court in Hamburg. The indictment accuses him of acting on behalf of Ukrainian state entities, complicity in a war crime through attacks against civilian infrastructure, causing an explosive detonation, and disrupting public operations. His attorney, Nicola Canestrini, denies all accusations and expects an acquittal at trial.
