Dramatic Monaco Explosion Injures Ukrainian Oligarch Vadim Yermolaev and Family Amid Murder Probe

On June 29, a powerful bomb exploded at the entrance of a luxury residential building in Monaco, injuring Ukrainian-born oligarch Vadim Yermolaev, his partner, and their 13-year-old son. Ukrainian authorities released dramatic surveillance footage showing a woman placing a bag at the site moments before the blast. The woman, Anastasia Berzovska, nicknamed "the woman in the black hat," was later shot dead near Kyiv by a Ukrainian intelligence officer and a former policeman, both arrested last week. Investigators suspect the two men also planned the Monaco bombing and recruited Berzovska for the attack.

The explosion shocked Monaco, a hub for the global elite, with Prince Albert II condemning it as a "heinous crime." Ukraine’s Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko stated the footage was a key piece of evidence recovered after suspects attempted to destroy it. The bomb was remotely detonated in the lobby of Yermolaev’s residence, causing severe damage. Yermolaev, who holds Cypriot citizenship, publicly accused active and former officers of Ukraine’s military intelligence (GUR) of orchestrating the assassination attempt, a claim that complicates President Volodymyr Zelensky’s political standing amid recent defense minister dismissals and nationwide protests.

The motive behind the attack remains unclear. Yermolaev was sanctioned by Ukraine in 2023 for allegedly trading alcohol in Russian-occupied Crimea and paying taxes to Russia. Ukrainian police initially suggested the attack might be linked to organized crime, citing Yermolaev’s alleged involvement in a €100 million fraud scheme operating through secret service centers in Dnipro. His eldest son, Artur Yermolaev, was arrested in Cyprus in late 2025 for fraud and extradited to Estonia, where he was sentenced to five years in prison. However, no public evidence currently connects these allegations to the Monaco bombing.

The case marks an unprecedented assassination attempt on European soil involving Ukrainian intelligence and raises concerns about internal conflicts within Ukraine’s security apparatus. The investigation continues as authorities seek to clarify the full scope of the conspiracy and its political implications.