Ukrainian court detains alleged killers of Monaco bomb attack suspect

Motives for the killing of Anastasiia Berezovska remain unclear as the unfolding saga grips both countries.

A Ukrainian court has detained two men accused of killing a woman wanted for the attempted assassination of a multimillionaire in Monaco.

The murky saga has rocked Ukraine and drawn widespread attention as motives for the attempted murder and killing of the alleged suspect remain unclear.

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In a Thursday statement, the Ukrainian Prosecutor General’s Office said a Kyiv court ordered that the two men – a serving and decorated officer in Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (GUR) and a former law enforcement officer – be held without bail.

On Tuesday, Ukrainian authorities reported finding the body of 39-year-old Ukrainian Anastasiia Berezovska with gunshot wounds to the head. Cartridges were also found nearby.

Berezovska was last week named by Interpol as a key suspect in a June 29 bomb attack on Ukrainian-born businessman Vadym Yermolaiev that left him, his son and partner seriously wounded.

The powerful explosion occurred in the evening and rocked a residential building in Monaco on the border with France.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy promised on Thursday night to reveal “additional relevant reports” on the case soon.

Unclear motives

It is unclear why the explosion targeted Yermolaiev, a property mogul who has been sanctioned by Ukraine since 2023 for continuing to do business in Russian-occupied Crimea.

The businessman, who has renounced his Ukrainian citizenship for Cypriot nationality, has not lived in Ukraine since Russia’s invasion, according to local media.

Monaco authorities had charged Berezovska with attempted murder, placing an explosive device in public with criminal intent, and criminal conspiracy in connection with the bombing.

In court on Thursday, the prosecutor revealed Berezovska arrived in Ukraine by bus from Poland two days after the Monaco blast.

Investigators used cryptocurrency transfers to trace her to her two suspected killers.

Earlier this week, suspected intelligence officer Vladyslav Reut confessed to shooting Berezovska and led investigators to her grave.

However, on Thursday, he retracted an earlier confession and accused co-defendant Vitalli Zhykovych of firing the shots that killed Berezovska, according to Ukrainian media, citing court proceedings. The officer said he had made earlier confessions out of fear.

Prosecutors say motives are still under investigation.