Woman wanted for Monaco attack on Ukrainian oligarch found dead

4 min read Original article ↗

A woman suspected of trying to assassinate a Ukrainian businessman in Monaco has been found dead near Kyiv, with a member of the country's military intelligence unit arrested.

On June 29 three people were injured after a bomb was detonated at the home of Vadym Yermolaev, who is under sanctions for continuing to operate in occupied Crimea.

In 2019, he renounced Ukrainian citizenship in favour of a Cypriot passport.

An image was released by authorities of a woman believed to have planted the bomb, with the Monaco prosecutor launching an attempted murder probe.


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Interpol issued a red notice for Anastasiia Berezovska, 39, on charges of attempted murder, placing an explosive device in a public place with criminal intent, and criminal conspiracy.

As first reported by Ukrainska Pravda, she has been found dead near Kyiv. The SBU, Ukraine's security service, later confirmed this in a statement.

It began: "A woman’s body has been found. She has been identified as Ukrainian national Anastasiia Berezovska, who was suspected by law enforcement authorities in the Principality of Monaco of carrying out an attempted murder of a family on Monaco’s territory, in which three people were injured, including a child."

Anastasia Berezovska (Image: Interpol)

The woman's body was discovered with gunshot wounds to the head and shells surrounding her at around 11:00 PM on July 6.

She had been outside of Ukraine from March 22, 2025 to July 1 this year.

German authorities said last week they had searched the rental apartment and vehicle of a 39-year-old Ukrainian woman suspected of being connected with the attack.

French outlet Le Figaro previously reported that prosecutors were investigating the possibility that the SBU may have been involved in the attempted murder.

Ukrainska Pravda reported that two people have been detained, one a current officer with HUR (Main Intelligence Directorate) and one a former law enforcement officer. This was later confirmed by the SBU.

The security agency said Berezovska had communicated with the two men as well as her family after returning to Ukraine.

The SBU said: "Having information that both men repeatedly made transfers to the crypto and bank accounts of A. Berezovska, the investigation worked them out as persons possibly involved in the attempted murder in Monaco."

The agency said the man employed by HUR had admitted to the murder but "did not inform his management about contacts with A. Berezovska, the transfer of funds to her and any of his other actions and acted at his own discretion".

When the home of the former law officer was searched a basement "similar to a torture chamber" was discovered, with a video posted online by the SBU.

Both defendants were detained on suspicion of committing murder by prior conspiracy by a group of people.

Monaco's Attorney General, Stéphane Thibault, said in a press conference the day after the attack that French and Monegasque police remained "in pursuit" of the bomber.

Le Figaro reported that the most likely explanation was that the suspect, who at that point had not been named, had escaped into Italy and then on to Germany.

The newspaper reported that investigators were focusing on a possible SBU connection, with the attack framed as more of a 'warning' than an actual assassination attempt.

The Ukrainian agency said on Tuesday: "All the information available to Ukrainian law enforcement officers was provided to the investigative authorities of the Principality of Monaco. The Office of the Prosecutor General is in close cooperation with the law enforcement agencies of the Principality of Monaco."

Police had initially been looking for a male suspect, and it's suspected Berezovska may have disguised herself as a man before carrying out the attack.

A package was left at the property just before 21:00 local time on June 29, with the resulting explosion critically injuring a woman, and inflicting on him serious leg injuries.

A 13-year-old boy was also hurt in the blast but suffered more minor injuries.

The identity of the woman and child remain unknown, but the injured woman is not Mr Yermolaev's wife. She told Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne she was not in the home at the time of the attack and was not hurt.

Monaco prosecutors said they suspected the involvement of other people, due to the sophisticated nature of the device, with two men arrested and later released due to a lack of evidence.