Volodymyr Zhuravlov, 44, was reportedly tracked using a speed camera.
A German court has ordered the arrest of a Ukrainian diver suspected of sabotaging Nord Stream cables in the fall of 2022.
In addition, two other people will also have suspect status.
Swedish reports Expresswho wrote that they had cooperation with the German media:
According to German newspapers Oil dies and Deutsche Zeitung and the TV channel ARB The call for proposals was already sent out in June.
Volodymyr Zhuravlov is a Ukrainian citizen, but is supposed to be living in Poland. In a telephone interview with the Süddeutsche Zeitung, he says he knows nothing about the wanted man and denies any involvement in the sabotage.
Poland confirms it received the arrest warrant from German authorities. But the Polish prosecutor's office says the Ukrainian national was not arrested when he fled to Ukraine in early July.
The other two suspects must be Ukrainian citizens and, like the two suspects, must be experienced divers.
According to Expressen, the diver was tracked down after a speed camera spotted the car he was driving, not far from where the Andromeda sailboat was located before the sabotage.
This boat was allegedly used during the sabotage operation.
“What I primarily react to is that this sailboat and this crew faced significant challenges in identifying the right attack points and transporting sufficient explosives,” says Tor Ivar Stromen, a researcher and naval captain at the Naval Academy, in a letter to VG.
The current says that the quantity and type of explosives are so large and distinct that individuals cannot access them.
– If these people are behind this, it is not a private initiative, but a large-scale intelligence operation, as Strommen claims.
Here's the media's supposed timeline for what happened in 2022:
- September 6: The three suspects were part of a group that sailed on the sailing yacht Andromeda in the Baltic Sea.
German newspaper Die Zeit wrote that investigators believe that the group, at one point or another during a tour between Sweden, Denmark, Poland and Germany, dived and planted explosives on gas pipelines.
- September 8: A truck was caught on camera. The truck driver allegedly claimed that a group of people had ordered him to take them from Ukraine to Germany, and also to pick them up. The driver is said to have pointed out the man who is now wanted.
On September 8, the sailboat docked in the city of Wick, Germany. German police found traces of explosives on the sailboat that were certainly used during the sabotage.
- September 26: Explosions were recorded on the seabed, and four pipeline leaks were subsequently discovered, two in Swedish waters and two in Danish waters.
According to Expressen, the sailboat was chartered by a company in Poland, owned by a Ukrainian. However, the order is said to have been placed by another Ukrainian, who denied knowledge of the booking to Expressen.
The Expressen newspaper wrote that the suspect denied her involvement to the Süddeutsche Zeitung, saying that she was on vacation.
The Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines were built in the Baltic Sea to transport Russian gas from Russia to Germany.
The Baltic Sea is bordered by several countries, including Sweden.
In February, Sweden and Denmark closed their investigations, finding no evidence of interference by their states or citizens.
Facts about the Nord Stream sabotage.
- The Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines run between Russia and Germany across the Baltic Sea.
- Nord Stream 1 is more than 120 miles long and runs from Vyborg in northwestern Russia to Greifswald in northeastern Germany.
- It was the longest undersea pipeline in the world when it was built.
- Nord Stream 2 runs parallel to Nord Stream 1. Built between 2018 and 2021, it was supposed to double Russia's gas export capacity to Europe, but has never been used.
- On September 26, explosions were recorded on the seabed, and subsequently four leaks were discovered in pipelines, two in Swedish waters and two in Danish waters.
- Explosive residues were found in items recovered from the site.
- Remains of the same type of explosive are said to have been found on a chartered sailboat that was in the area where the explosions occurred.
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