German prosecutors charge Ukrainian "Serhii K" with war crimes over pipeline attacks
Suspect allegedly coordinated team of divers to plant explosives on Nord Stream in 2022
Arrested in Italy and extradited to Germany; denied involvement, fought extradition
Ukraine denies role; case could strain ties with Germany, its top European military aid provider
Germany's top prosecutor has indicted a Ukrainian national over the 2022 explosions that crippled the Nord Stream gas pipelines under the Baltic Sea, moving one of Europe's most politically sensitive sabotage cases closer to trial.
The indictment against the man, identified under German privacy rules only as Serhii K, was served on Wednesday, his Berlin law firm Menaker told Reuters. The federal prosecutor’s office declined to comment.
German public broadcaster and media outlets, which first reported the move, said prosecutors accuse him of attacking civilian energy infrastructure, causing an explosion and destroying structures. According to the German investigation, the Ukrainian was the leader of a sabotage group.
Alleged Role in The Sabotage
According to arrest-warrant documents and a December 2025 detention ruling by the Federal Court of Justice, prosecutors allege that Serhii K helped coordinate a team that used a sailing yacht, the Andromeda, to place explosive devices on the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines near Denmark's Bornholm island in September 2022.
Prosecutors and the court suspect the Andromeda's crew consisted of a coordinator, a skipper, four deep-sea divers and an explosives specialist. They say Serhii K is suspected of acting as the on-board coordinator and team leader, not as a diver or bomb expert.
Court records describe the suspect as a Ukrainian national who was an officer in a Ukrainian special forces unit at the time. Serhii K has denied involvement.
Arrest and Extradition
The suspect was arrested in Italy's Rimini province on August 21, 2025, and transferred to Germany on November 27, 2025. A German judge activated an arrest warrant the next day. A second Ukrainian suspect was later detained in Poland on another German arrest warrant.
Serhii K had fought his extradition for months and went on hunger strike, feeling he was being treated poorly. A December 2025 complaint against his detention was rejected by the Federal Court of Justice (BGH).
Political and Legal Context
The blasts, which Russia and Western countries have both described as sabotage, knocked out key routes for Russian gas to Europe months after Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, deepening an energy crisis that hit Germany especially hard.
German courts have treated the case as falling within German jurisdiction because the damaged pipelines end at Lubmin in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and their loss affected Germany’s energy security.
The attack released record-breaking amounts of methane into the Baltic Sea and left the multi-billion dollar infrastructure inoperable.
Ukraine has denied involvement in the case, which may have serious implications for its relationship with Germany, its biggest source of European military aid.
The State Protection Senate of the Hanseatic Higher Regional Court in Hamburg must now decide whether to admit the charges and when the trial will take place.
