A woman disguised as a man, fleeing across Europe with a remote control
In the gilded enclave of Monaco, where violence is a stranger, a carefully placed parcel shattered the quiet of a Monday evening and sent three people — including a child — to hospital. Interpol has since named Anastasiia Berezovska, a Ukrainian woman who disguised herself as a man to carry out what investigators believe was a coordinated act of targeted violence against a sanctioned oligarch with deep ties to Russian-annexed Crimea. The attack raises old and unresolved questions about the long reach of war, the entanglements of money and geopolitics, and the vulnerability of even the most protected corners of Europe.
- A remote-controlled bomb detonated in a Monaco apartment hallway, critically injuring a businessman's partner — both her legs later amputated — and leaving a 13-year-old child hospitalized.
- Investigators initially hunted a heavyset man before evidence revealed the attacker was a woman in disguise, now identified as Anastasiia Berezovska, 39, who fled on foot into France and then by rental car across multiple European countries.
- The target, Vadym Iermolaiev, is a Ukrainian-born oligarch sanctioned for business dealings in Russian-annexed Crimea, while his son faces a €100 million fraud conviction in Estonia — leaving the motive tangled in a web of financial and political grievance.
- Monaco's deputy prosecutor says the bomb's sophistication points to a wider conspiracy; two early arrests yielded nothing, and Berezovska remains at large, last spotted in Frankfurt.
- Prince Albert II condemned the attack as 'an odious act,' and the principality — unaccustomed to such violence — now grapples with the security implications of hosting sanctioned figures in an era of transnational retaliation.
On a Monday evening near Monaco's Boulevard d'Italie, a package left in the hallway of a small apartment building detonated by remote control as three residents approached the entrance. A 58-year-old businessman, his partner, and a 13-year-old child were rushed to hospitals in Nice with life-threatening injuries. By Friday, Interpol had issued a red notice for Anastasiia Berezovska — a 39-year-old Ukrainian national living in Germany — who had disguised herself as a man to plant the device and then fled methodically across Europe.
Security footage initially led investigators to search for a heavily built man in dark clothing. As the evidence was reviewed, the image shifted: Berezovska, dark-haired with a distinctive tattoo running from shoulder to elbow, had crossed into France on foot after the blast, then driven a Germany-rented car through several countries before returning to German territory. She was last spotted in Frankfurt.
The intended target was Vadym Iermolaiev, a Ukrainian-born businessman holding Cypriot nationality who has lived in Monaco since at least 2021. He has been under Ukrainian sanctions since December 2023 for operating an alcohol business in Russian-annexed Crimea and continuing to remit taxes to Russia after the full-scale invasion. His partner suffered critical injuries — French media reported both legs were amputated. His own condition, initially grave, has since stabilized. The 13-year-old was admitted in non-critical condition.
The attack's precision led Monaco's deputy prosecutor to conclude that Berezovska did not act alone. Two people were arrested and released for lack of evidence. Adding further complexity, Iermolaiev's son Artur was convicted of fraud in Estonia this year for running a fake investment scheme that defrauded investors of roughly €100 million. Whether the bombing stems from the father's sanctions, the son's crimes, or another grievance entirely remains unresolved.
Prince Albert II called the attack 'an odious act' and pledged the full mobilization of public services. For Monaco — one of the world's smallest and wealthiest states, where such violence is almost unknown — the bombing has exposed the quiet dangers that follow sanctioned oligarchs and their entanglements into even the most protected enclaves of Europe.
On Monday evening in Monaco, as three residents approached the entrance of a small apartment building near the Boulevard d'Italie, a package left in the hallway detonated. The blast, triggered by remote control, sent a 58-year-old businessman, his partner, and a 13-year-old child to hospitals in Nice with injuries severe enough to threaten their lives. By Friday, Interpol had issued a red notice for the woman suspected of planting the device: Anastasiia Berezovska, 39, a Ukrainian national living in Germany who had disguised herself as a man to carry out what investigators believe was a carefully orchestrated attack.
Berezovska is described as German-speaking, dark-haired, with a distinctive tattoo—possibly a snake—running from her shoulder to her elbow on her right arm. Security footage and witness accounts initially led authorities to search for a heavily built man in a dark long-sleeved shirt and light shorts. But as investigators reviewed the evidence, the image shifted. Photographs now circulated by Interpol show a woman in a striped white shirt, one image capturing her holding what appears to be an electronic device with a cable. She had crossed into France on foot after the explosion, then fled by car—a vehicle rented in Germany—moving through several European countries before returning to German territory. By the time the red notice was issued, she had been spotted in Frankfurt and was considered at large.
The target of the attack was Vadym Iermolaiev, a businessman originally from Ukraine who now holds Cypriot nationality and has lived in Monaco since at least 2021. He has been subject to Ukrainian sanctions since December 2023 over business activities in Crimea, the territory annexed by Russia in 2014. Ukrainian authorities allege he operated an alcohol business there and continued remitting taxes to Russia even after the full-scale invasion began in 2022. Forbes Ukraine estimated his wealth at $220 million in 2021. His partner suffered critical injuries; French media reported that surgeons amputated both her legs. The man's condition, initially life-threatening, has since stabilized. The 13-year-old child was admitted to Lenval children's hospital in non-critical condition.
Monaco's deputy prosecutor, Morgan Raymond, told investigators that the sophistication of the explosive device and the precision of the attack suggested Berezovska had not acted alone. Two people were arrested in Monaco earlier in the week but were released when no evidence connected them to the bombing. Raymond described how the suspect had set the device to detonate as the three victims entered the building, then made her escape methodically—on foot into France, then by rental car through Italy and other European countries before reaching Germany.
Iermolaiev's 35-year-old son, Artur, is also a figure of considerable controversy. He was convicted of fraud in Estonia this year after admitting to operating a fake investment scheme from Ukraine that defrauded investors of approximately €100 million between 2019 and 2022. Whether the bombing was connected to the father's sanctions status, the son's criminal conviction, or some other grievance remains unclear. What is certain is that the attack has shaken Monaco, one of the world's smallest and wealthiest sovereign states, where such violence is rare. Prince Albert II called it "an odious act" and said all public services had been mobilized in response. As of Friday, Berezovska remained at large, and the investigation into who else may have been involved continues.
Notable Quotes
An odious act; all public services have been mobilized— Prince Albert II of Monaco
Given the complexity of the explosive device and the sophisticated nature of the attack, investigators considered it probable she had not acted alone— Morgan Raymond, Monaco's deputy prosecutor
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why would someone go to such lengths to disguise themselves as a man? It seems like an unnecessary complication.
It's not unnecessary at all. If you're planning something this visible—leaving a package in a public building—you want to be remembered as something other than what you are. A disguise buys you time. It sends investigators down one path while you're moving down another.
And the sophistication of the device itself—what does that tell us?
It tells us this wasn't improvised. Someone with technical knowledge built this. Someone who understood how to trigger it remotely, how to time it. That's why the prosecutor said she almost certainly didn't work alone. You don't acquire that skill set in isolation.
The target has enemies on multiple sides, it seems. The Ukrainian government sanctions him, his son ran a massive fraud scheme. How do investigators even begin to narrow down who wanted him dead?
That's the real puzzle. Is this retaliation for his Crimea business? Revenge from fraud victims? Something else entirely? The fact that she fled to Germany, where she was living, suggests some kind of planning or safe harbor there. That's a thread investigators will pull hard.
What strikes you most about this case?
The woman in the photograph holding that electronic device. She's visible, documented, identified—and still she got away. She crossed borders, rented cars, moved through multiple countries. That suggests either remarkable operational skill or help from people who knew how to move her. Either way, it's unsettling.