A 39-year-old Ukrainian woman is being hunted by police across Europe after a parcel bomb explosion in Monaco left three people seriously injured — including a sanctioned multi-millionaire, his partner and his 13-year-old son.
Anastasiia Berezovska, who has a snake tattoo on her right arm and speaks German, is suspected of planting the device in the entrance hall of an apartment building just before 21:00 local time on Monday. The explosion happened moments later as the three victims were entering the building.
“Ukrainian woman Anastasiia Berezovska, 39, hunted after parcel bomb in Monaco leaves three seriously injured.”
Monaco’s deputy prosecutor Morgan Raymond said investigators believe Berezovska spent several days casing out the residence, disguising herself as a man to avoid detection. CCTV footage showed her wearing a dark bucket hat as she left the scene on foot after depositing the parcel. She is then believed to have picked up a hire car and driven to Italy and onward to Germany.
According to Monaco’s head prosecutor Stéphane Thibault, one of the three victims remains in a life-threatening condition. Thibault added that before detonating the bomb using a remote control, Berezovska verified that all three victims were on the front steps of the luxury hotel where the device had been placed.
While authorities in Monaco have not officially confirmed the victims’ identities, local reports name the target as 58-year-old Vadym Yermolaiev, a wealthy real estate developer living in Monaco who was sanctioned by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in 2023 over allegations that companies linked to him paid taxes in Russian-occupied Crimea. He has denied wrongdoing.
An Interpol Red Notice has been issued for Berezovska, wanted for attempted murder, placing an explosive device on a public road with criminal intent, and criminal conspiracy. The notice alerts all 196 Interpol member countries to locate and arrest her.
In Germany, police in the state of Hesse confirmed that special forces searched a rented apartment belonging to a 39-year-old Ukrainian woman in the Main-Taunus district on Thursday. A vehicle she used was also searched and seized. “Evidence has been secured and will be handed over to the Monegasque authorities,” the Hessian security authorities said.
Monaco’s public prosecutor Stephane Thibault thanked police from Monaco and France for their cooperation, which made it possible “to identify, in a particularly short time, the person suspected of having carried out the attack.”
Investigators are now searching for possible accomplices, with Deputy Prosecutor Morgan Raymond saying the suspect may not have acted alone.