Ukrainian detained on suspicion of Nord Stream sabotage was previously SSU officer – WSJ
On August 21, Italian authorities arrested a Ukrainian citizen on suspicion of coordinating the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines in 2022. He turned out to be a retired Armed Forces of Ukraine captain and a former officer of the Security Service of Ukraine.
The Wall Street Journal reported this, citing sources, Censor.NET notes.
According to Italian police, the Ukrainian man, identified only as Serhii (his last name has not been disclosed), allegedly belonged to a group of people who carried out the Nord Stream blasts in 2022.
"Serhii K., now a retired AFU captain, previously served in the Security Service of Ukraine as well as in an elite unit that defended Kyiv in 2022. He commanded a small unit whose mission was related to air defense," the article states.
Investigators claim the man allegedly led a group of two soldiers and four civilian divers secretly recruited by a special Ukrainian military unit to plant explosives that damaged the underwater pipelines.
German prosecutors accuse the man of coordinating the operation to sabotage the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines near the island of Bornholm in September 2022.
Italian authorities must now extradite the suspect to Germany, where he will face formal charges.
He faces up to 15 years in prison, but the sentence may be reduced if he cooperates with investigators.
As a reminder, on August 21, Germany’s federal prosecutor’s office confirmed that a Ukrainian citizen, Serhii K., had been detained in Italy on suspicion of involvement in the Nord Stream sabotage in 2022.
