The man, identified only as Serhii K. under German privacy laws, was arrested in August
near the Italian town of Rimini on a European warrant over the
explosions that crippled the pipelines in the Baltic Sea supplying
Russian gas to Germany.
The
Court of Cassation, Italy's highest court, supported the defence's
argument that there had been "incorrect legal classification of the
facts underlying the European Arrest Warrant," lawyer Nicola Canestrini
said in a statement.
The case will have to go before court again at a date that is still to be confirmed.
"In
light of today's outcome, I will assess in the next few days whether
the conditions exist to request my client's release, as the legal basis
for his detention has now been removed," Canestrini added.
Described
by both Moscow and the West as an act of sabotage, the explosions in
September 2022 largely severed Russian gas supplies to Europe, prompting
a major escalation in the Ukraine conflict and squeezing energy
supplies on the continent.
No one has taken responsibility for the blasts and Ukraine has denied any role.
The
suspect was part of a group of people who planted devices on the
pipelines near the Danish island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea,
according to a statement issued by the German prosecutor's office in
August.
He faces charges of collusion to cause an explosion, anti-constitutional sabotage and destruction of important structures.
He had taken his fight to the Court of Cassation after a previous ruling that he should be handed over to the German authorities.
Reporting by Paolo Chiriatti Writing by Keith Weir, editing by Gavin Jones
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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