Mystery deepens. Ukrainian officer linked to Nord Stream sabotage vanishes
5:46 PM EDT, April 22, 2024
A Ukrainian officer suspected of participating in the sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipeline has reportedly vanished under mysterious circumstances.
This information comes from the Biznes Alert portal, which cites Ukrainian media. The officer has been in custody since last year on charges of "abuse of power" and is a known critic of Volodymyr Zelensky.
Senior officer Roman Czerwinski, allegedly linked with Ukrainian intelligence services, is believed to have played a significant role in the explosion of the Nord Stream gas pipelines. According to reports by The Washington Post and Der Spiegel last year, Czerwinski is suspected of coordinating the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines in September 2022, purportedly acting under orders from Kyiv authorities. Despite ongoing investigations in Denmark, Sweden, and Germany that have yet to pinpoint the culprits, Czerwinski has denied any wrongdoing.
Now, Biznes Alert reports that Czerwinski has disappeared in Ukraine under unexplained circumstances.
Czerwinski's arrest last year for abuse of power came after the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) accused him of inadvertently revealing the location of Ukrainian Armed Forces personnel at Kanatowo airport in the Kirovohrad region to the Russian military, leading to an airstrike on the airport. Czerwinski has consistently argued that the criminal case against him is politically motivated.
His detention was set to end on April 19, 2024, with a hearing scheduled for the same day. However, the hearing was canceled, and he was transferred to a detention center in Kropyvnytskyi, after which he seemingly disappeared. Ukrainian media report that neither Czerwinski's lawyers nor his family have been able to contact him since, leaving his current whereabouts unknown. The foreign press's warnings about Czerwinski's critical stance towards President Volodymyr Zelensky have fuelled concerns about his safety.
