A Ukrainian diving instructor has been arrested in Croatia on suspicion of involvement in the 2022 Nord Stream pipeline bombings, according to reports.
Arrest and allegations
The man, identified as Volodymyr Z, was detained in the city of Rijeka on 13 August 2026 at the request of German authorities, the Polish news outlet Onet reported. German prosecutors have issued a European arrest warrant for him, accusing him of being part of a team that sabotaged the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines in the Baltic Sea in September 2022.
Volodymyr Z is a certified diving instructor who worked at a diving centre in the Polish city of Wrocław, according to Onet. He is alleged to have been part of a group that used a yacht to transport explosives to the site of the pipelines and then carried out the underwater bombings.
Investigation and background
The German federal prosecutor's office has been investigating the Nord Stream attacks since 2022. In June 2023, German media reported that investigators had identified a Ukrainian man as a suspect, but no charges were filed at that time.
The Nord Stream pipelines, which run from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea, were ruptured by a series of explosions in September 2022, causing massive leaks of natural gas. The attacks have been widely blamed on sabotage, but no one has been officially held responsible.
Impact and next steps
Volodymyr Z is expected to be extradited to Germany to face charges. The arrest marks a significant development in the investigation, which has been ongoing for nearly four years.
