Rimini, Italy - In a targeted operation, the carabinieri of Rimini arrested a key suspect in the Nord Stream gas pipeline sabotage case early on Thursday morning. The arrested man is a 49-year-old Ukrainian citizen who is accused of being involved in the explosives attacks on the strategically important infrastructure in the North Sea.
The arrest was made on the basis of a European arrest warrant issued by German judicial authorities - the Federal Court of Justice at the request of the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office. The man is accused of having played a coordinating role in the acts of sabotage on September 26, 2022.
International cooperation leads to success
The decisive tip-off about the man's possible whereabouts in Italy came from the International Police Cooperation Service. Carabinieri investigators in Rimini then picked up the trail and were able to locate the 49-year-old in a vacation home in San Clemente in the province of Rimini, where he was staying for a few days with his family. After his presence was confirmed, the special forces surrounded the bungalow in the early hours of the morning. During the subsequent raid, the man was arrested without resistance.
Background: The attacks on the pipelines
The Ukrainian is suspected of being involved, together with other accomplices, in the planting of explosive devices that were detonated near the Danish island of Bornholm. The detonations caused serious damage to the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, which were built to transport Russian gas to Europe. Following his arrest, the man was transferred to Rimini prison by order of the General Prosecutor's Office at the Bologna Court of Appeal, where he is awaiting the next legal steps.
