Suspect in Monaco parcel bomb attack found dead in Ukraine
The woman suspected of carrying out a parcel bomb attack in Monaco that injured a sanctioned Ukrainian businessman and members of his family has been found dead in Ukraine, according to the country’s Security Service (SBU).
The suspect, Anastasiia Berezovska, had been the subject of an international manhunt after authorities alleged she fled Monaco following the June 29 bombing at the entrance of an apartment building.
The 39-year-old’s body was discovered buried in a forest in the Kyiv region with gunshot wounds to the head, the SBU and Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s Office said.
Authorities have since arrested two suspects in connection with her death, including a serving officer of Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence and another man, both of whom are being investigated for premeditated murder.
The SBU said Berezovska returned to Ukraine on July 1, two days after the bombing. Investigators believe she later met the two suspects on a highway in the Kyiv region before she was killed.
According to prosecutors, she travelled with the men before her murder.
Investigators said Berezovska remained in contact with her family as well as the two suspects after arriving in Ukraine. The pair were already under investigation as possible accomplices in the Monaco bombing after authorities discovered they had repeatedly transferred money to her cryptocurrency wallets and bank accounts.
The SBU said the serving intelligence officer later confessed to killing Berezovska with the assistance of the second suspect.
Both men have been detained while investigations continue under the supervision of the head of Ukraine’s intelligence directorate, Oleg Ivashchenko.
During searches linked to the investigation, officers also uncovered a basement at the home of one of the suspects that resembled a torture chamber. However, prosecutors stressed there was no evidence connecting the room to Berezovska’s killing, describing it instead as reflective of the suspect’s profile.
The Monaco bombing occurred on June 29 when a parcel exploded as residents entered an apartment building, injuring three people, two of them seriously.
Monaco prosecutors alleged Berezovska had spent several days monitoring the building and disguised herself as a man while carrying out the attack.
Before news of her death emerged, investigators believed she had escaped through Italy and Germany, prompting an Interpol Red Notice for attempted murder, conspiracy and explosives offences.
The SBU said Ukrainian authorities are cooperating closely with Monaco’s prosecutors and have shared all available evidence as investigations continue to identify any additional suspects.
Although Monaco has not officially identified the victims, local media reported that the intended target was Vadym Yermolaiev, a Ukrainian-born real estate developer who has been under Ukrainian sanctions since 2023 over business interests in Russian-occupied Crimea.
Yermolaiev, who renounced his Ukrainian citizenship in 2019 and is now a Cypriot citizen, has been living in Monaco. According to Forbes, he was ranked among Ukraine’s wealthiest individuals in 2020 with an estimated fortune of $230 million.
Source: BBC
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