Monaco authorities have named a 39-year-old Ukrainian woman as the key suspect in a sophisticated parcel bomb plot that injured a wealthy businessman and two members of his family. The suspect escaped through a number of European countries before reaching Germany, where she is thought to have been living, investigators say.
The suspect was identified by Monaco prosecutors as Anastasiia Berezovska who now has an international arrest order out for her as well as an Interpol Red Notice. She is wanted for the offences of attempt to murder, installing an explosive device in a public place with criminal intent and criminal conspiracy. The Red Notice asks law enforcement forces worldwide to find her and provisionally arrest her while extradition proceedings are pending.
The incident occurred Monday night outside a Monaco apartment block. The perpetrator left a package with an explosive at the door of the building and detonated it remotely as the victims approached, investigators said. The explosion badly wounded Ukrainian-born businessman Vadym Yermolaiev, his spouse and his son. One person remains in critical condition.
Initially, detectives suspected the attacker was a man after CCTV footage showed a person wearing a dark bucket hat and baggy clothes. But after further investigation of surveillance footage and witness reports, authorities concluded the suspect was in fact a woman who dressed as a man for both the reconnaissance and the execution of the attack.
The suspect rushed away on foot into neighbouring France, then travelled through numerous European nations in a rental car picked up in Germany and finally returned to German territory, Deputy Prosecutor of Monaco Morgan Raymond said. As part of the cross-border inquiry, German investigators have since investigated a residence and car associated to Berezovska in the Frankfurt area.
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Authorities think the attack was well organised and are looking for if Berezovska had accomplices. Two people detained briefly in Monaco have been freed without charge, but authorities say they are continuing to try to locate others who may have helped plot or carry out the explosion.
The motivation is still under investigation. Yermolaiev, a Ukrainian-born property developer who became a Cypriot citizen, was the intended target, media reports said. In 2023, he was sanctioned by Ukraine for alleged commercial dealings in Russian-occupied Crimea, the charges of which have received much public attention. Prosecutors have not yet formally released a motive for the attack.
The attack has sent shockwaves through Monaco, a principality known for its security and wealthy people. Prince Albert II has condemned the incident and officials have tightened security and committed to pursue everyone involved in what investigators are calling a highly sophisticated and targeted operation. Monaco, France and Germany are working closely with Interpol and other European law enforcement organisations and the international investigation is ongoing.
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