The court's decision means that Volodymyr Z. will not be handed over to the German side as part of a European arrest warrant. Judge Łubowski explained that the Polish court did not have sufficient evidence in this case because the German authorities had only sent general information regarding the allegations. Therefore, as he emphasized, the extradition request does not deserve to be granted.
When announcing the decision, the judge addressed Volodymyr Zh. directly, informing him of the revocation of his arrest: “First of all, you are free.” He then emphasized that the extradition proceedings were not aimed at determining whether the suspect had actually committed the alleged act, but only at assessing whether there were grounds for executing the arrest warrant.
The court's decision is not final – an appeal may be lodged against it to the Court of Appeal.
Let us recall that the destruction of the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines occurred on September 26, 2022, at the bottom of the Baltic Sea, at a depth of approximately 80 meters. Three of the four gas pipelines that were used to transport natural gas from Russia to Germany were destroyed. 49-year-old Volodymyr Zh. from the beginning he denies having any connection with this event. He claims that he was in Ukraine at the time of the explosions.
