A parcel bomb exploded just before 21:00 local time on Monday in the entrance hall of an apartment building in Monaco, seriously injuring a sanctioned Ukrainian multi-millionaire, his partner and their 13-year-old son. The blast came moments after the three residents stepped onto the property's front steps. Now, a 39-year-old Ukrainian woman is being hunted across Europe after allegedly casing the scene for days while disguised as a man.
Anastasiia Berezovska, who speaks German and has a snake tattoo on her right arm, is suspected of placing the package and then detonating it with a remote control after verifying her victims were in place, Monaco's head prosecutor Stéphane Thibault said on Friday. One of the three victims remains in life-threatening condition, he added.
“A Ukrainian woman disguised as a man is wanted over a parcel bomb that left three seriously injured in Monaco.”
Monaco's deputy prosecutor Morgan Raymond confirmed that investigators believe Berezovska “had conducted several site surveys” prior to the attack while “dressing up as a man” to avoid identification. CCTV footage captured her wearing a dark bucket hat as she left the scene on foot, later picking up a hire car and driving to Italy before continuing on to Germany.
Authorities have not officially named the victims, but local reports identify the target as Vadym Yermolaiev, a 58-year-old real estate developer living in Monaco. Once one of Ukraine’s wealthiest businessmen, Yermolaiev was sanctioned by 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.
On Thursday, German police in the state of Hesse searched a rented apartment belonging to a 39-year-old Ukrainian woman in the Main-Taunus district. 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. Raymond said investigators are also looking for possible accomplices, suggesting the suspect may not have acted alone.