Reports stated: “The owner of the complex and its employees mentioned during the survey that the Kuznetsov family seemed like one of the many families coming from abroad to vacation on the Adriatic coast.” Italian police forces arrested, on Thursday, based on a request from the German Attorney General’s office, a 49-year-old Ukrainian citizen in Rimini province, suspected of coordinating sabotage on the Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea in September 2022.
The Italian Attorney General’s office explained in a press release: “On the night of today (August 21, 2025), the Attorney General’s office detained the Ukrainian citizen, Sergey K, in Rimini province (Italy), based on a European arrest warrant issued by the investigating judge of the Federal Court on August 18, 2025.” Kuznetsov was arrested upon his arrival in Italy to vacation with his family.
The local police learned about the wanted man after he checked into a hotel complex. Upon their arrival at the complex, the police officers showed the staff the pictures provided by the German authorities and proceeded with the arrest of the Ukrainian, receiving a positive identification.
Nord Stream AG, the operator of the Nord Stream pipeline, reported that the destruction of the gas pipelines was unprecedented, and it is impossible to estimate the repair duration. The Russian Attorney General’s office has filed a lawsuit for international terrorism.
Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary for the Russian president, stated that Russia has repeatedly requested data on the Nord Stream explosions but has never received them.
