Almost two years after the explosions at the Nord Stream pipelines, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office sent an arrest warrant to Poland. But the suspect escaped because an important piece of information was missing.
In connection with the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea, the Polish public prosecutor’s office has received a European arrest warrant from the Federal Prosecutor’s Office to arrest a suspect. A spokeswoman for the Attorney General’s Office in Warsaw told the German Press Agency.
The suspect is said to be Volodymyr Z., a Ukrainian citizen who was last in Poland. However, investigators did not find him at his place of residence, said the spokeswoman for the Polish Attorney General’s Office. “The man crossed the border between Poland and Ukraine at the beginning of July.”
No entry in Schengen list of wanted persons
This was possible because the German side had not made an entry in the Schengen register, which lists those wanted under a European arrest warrant. “Volodymyr Z. crossed the Polish-Ukrainian border before he was arrested, and the Polish border guards had neither the information nor the basis to arrest him, as he was not listed as a wanted person,” said the spokeswoman.
Previously, “Die Zeit”, ARD and the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” had reported that the Federal Prosecutor General had obtained an arrest warrant from the Federal Court of Justice in the sabotage case. “We are not commenting on the media reports,” said a spokeswoman for the Federal Ministry of Justice in Berlin. The Federal Prosecutor’s Office was not immediately available for comment.
The two gas pipelines Nord Stream 1 and 2 were damaged and interrupted by several explosions on September 26, 2022. The explosions were registered near the Danish Baltic Sea island of Bornholm and shortly afterwards four leaks were discovered on three of the four lines of the Nord Stream pipelines. Russian natural gas had previously flowed to Germany through Nord Stream 1. Nord Stream 2 was not yet in operation due to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the political disputes that followed. The authorities in several countries began investigations into the case. However, Denmark and Sweden have since discontinued the proceedings. There has long been a lot of speculation about the perpetrators.
Other suspects
According to research by the three media outlets, two other Ukrainian nationals are also suspected of the crime – including a woman. According to reports, they were involved in the attacks. They may have attached the explosives to the pipelines as divers, it was further stated. The information now published is therefore also based on “tips from a foreign intelligence service”.
Previous investigations had focused on a sailing yacht on which traces of explosives were discovered in July 2023. It was suspected that the “Andromeda” may have been used to transport the explosives for the sabotage.
Source: Stern
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