The Swedish Security Service has completed its crime scene investigation of leakages in the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea, offshore Denmark and Sweden.
The investigation, carried out with support from the Swedish Coast Guard, Armed Forces and Police Authority, is headed by a National Security Unit prosecutor.
Its results confirmed that the damage to the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines, within the Swedish economic zone, were caused by detonations.
The evidence gathered from the site strengthen the suspicions of gross sabotage, stated Swedish Security Service.
The Swedish Security Service, in its statement said: “Certain seizures were made during the on-site investigation. The Swedish Security Service is continuously taking various measures in its investigation into these events.
“As part of this work, the seized material will now be processed and analysed. The continued investigation will show whether anyone can be suspected of, and later prosecuted for, this crime.
“The Swedish Security Service assesses the Baltic Sea incidents to be very serious, and is keeping a close eye on developments and taking the measures needed to fulfil our duty to protect Sweden and its security.”
Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 are twin gas pipelines operated by a consortium majority owned by Russia’s Gazprom.
They run from Vyborg, Russia to Lubmin near Greifswald, Germany, crossing Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) of Russia, Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Germany, in the Baltic Sea.
Last week, several leaks were discovered in the underwater Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea, offshore Denmark, and Sweden.
The pipelines were not transporting gas at the time of the blasts, but contained pressurised methane, which created a wide stream of bubbles on the sea surface.
In a separate development, the European Space Agency (ESA) announced that its satellites detected methane plume in Nord Stream leak.
It has deployed a suite of complementary Earth observation satellites carrying optical and radar imaging instruments, to characterise the gas leak bubbling in the Baltic, said ESA.
