The Italian Supreme Court on Wednesday approved the extradition of a Ukrainian man suspected of sabotage against the Nord Stream pipelines in 2022 to Germany. His defense lawyer, Nicola Canestrini, announced this in a press release.
The Ukrainian is therefore expected to be extradited to German police within the coming days, the lawyer said.
- The fight for rights and the rule of law is far from over. It will now continue in Germany, Canestrini wrote.
- No matter how great the disappointment, I remain convinced of an acquittal after a full trial in Germany.
The lawyer added that the defense has not yet had full access to the case files, but that he expects the German defense team to have access.
The Ukrainian man charged with sabotage has been referred to by German police as "Serhii K.". He was arrested in August near the Italian coastal town of Rimini on the basis of a European arrest warrant. The man is a former officer in the Ukrainian military.
The Ukrainian is suspected of having coordinated sabotage against the two Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, which run in the Baltic Sea between Germany and Russia.
He and a group of other people allegedly placed explosive charges on the two pipelines near Bornholm. This was previously stated in a statement by the prosecutor's office in Germany.
The accused Ukrainian denies having played a role in the sabotage, which took place on September 26, 2022.
The case has also been investigated by both the Danish and Swedish authorities. These investigations were stopped in February last year. Recently, a court in Bologna ruled that "Serhii K." could be extradited to face prosecution in Germany.
His lawyer brought the case before the Italian Supreme Court, which has now issued its decision.
Another man - called "Volodymyr Z." - was arrested in Poland in September. This man, a diver, was also wanted by German authorities in connection with the Nord Stream sabotage.
However, in October a Polish court ruled that he should not be extradited to Germany.
/ritzau/
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