German prosecutors have charged a Ukrainian national over the Nord Stream pipeline explosions, citing war crimes and sabotage.

More than three years after the Nord Stream pipeline explosions, German federal prosecutors have indicted Serhij K., a Ukrainian national, for war crimes, including attacking civilian infrastructure, orchestrating a massive explosion, and destroying property. The charges allege that Serhij K., a former Ukrainian army officer, led a team of divers, a skipper, and explosives experts to carry out the attack.

According to the indictment, the group rented a yacht in Rostock, Germany, using forged documents and transported high-grade military explosives to the Baltic Sea near Bornholm, Denmark. Explosions on September 26, 2022, tore through three of the four Nord Stream pipelines. The operation allegedly aimed to disrupt Russia’s ability to fund its war against Ukraine through gas sales to Germany. Serhij K. was arrested in Italy during a family vacation and is now in custody in Hamburg.