Monaco blast injures Ukrainian tycoon Vadym Yermolaiev and family
An explosion at a Monaco apartment entrance injured a Ukrainian businessman and two relatives. Investigators believe the family was deliberately targeted, but the motive remains unknown.
An explosion at the entrance to an apartment building in Monaco injured a Ukrainian tycoon with ties to Russia and two family members, authorities said on Tuesday. Prosecutor Stéphane Thibault said police were searching for a suspect who fled on foot after the blast late on Monday, and that the motive was not yet clear.
Media reports identified one of the injured as Ukrainian-born construction and real estate businessman Vadym Yermolaiev. Authorities did not officially name the three injured people, but Monaco's minister of state Christophe Mirmand said, "It appears that the family was specifically targeted," adding that surveillance footage showed the suspect had "walked around the area several times while waiting for the victims".
The blast took place at about 9 pm on Monday at the entrance of a residence near the French border. According to Mirmand, the three were "apparently returning home peacefully" and "were caught in the explosion as they crossed the threshold of their apartment building". Thibault said the woman who was injured was in a life-threatening condition. Mirmand told French broadcaster LCI that she was being treated at a hospital in Nice, while her partner and a 13-year-old child suffered less severe injuries but remained in hospital on Tuesday.
Monaco police opened an attempted murder investigation, though Thibault said the case was not being treated as a terrorism investigation. Mirmand said the family were regular residents of Monaco and authorities did not yet know whether they had received threats in the past. Surveillance footage showed the suspect escaping by steps to a small street leading to the neighbouring French town of Beausoleil. In an image published by French media, the suspect was seen wearing a black jacket, light-coloured trousers, white shoes and a black bucket hat partly covering the face.
Prince Albert II described the blast as "an odious act" and said all public services had been mobilised to ensure security. The attack shocked Monaco, a wealthy Mediterranean principality known for its concentration of rich residents, tax-friendly system and Formula 1 Grand Prix. It is widely seen as one of the safest places in the world, helped by a network of thousands of surveillance cameras. Monaco has a population of about 38,000, and only about a fifth are citizens of the principality.
It remained unclear why the family was targeted or who was behind the attack. Russia has a long history of targeting its enemies abroad, and Western intelligence officials have recently said such targeted killings have increased since President Vladimir Putin's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Ukraine is also believed to have carried out attacks and targeted killings of Russian figures during the war, though those have largely been limited to Ukrainian or Russian territory. Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said its embassy in France, which also handles Monaco, was in touch with local authorities and that Ukrainian diplomats were at the scene to provide assistance.
Yermolaiev, who was born in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, built his fortune through the Alef Group, whose businesses include commercial real estate, manufacturing and agriculture. He became one of Ukraine's best-known property developers and has regularly featured in rankings of the country's wealthiest entrepreneurs. In an interview with Forbes Ukraine, Yermolaiev said he gave up his Ukrainian citizenship and became a Cypriot citizen in 2017. In December 2023, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy imposed sanctions on him as part of a wider package targeting people and companies Kyiv said had business links to Russia or Russian-occupied territories. Cyprus company records list a Vadym Iermolaiev as a director of Vespano Ltd. in Limassol, registered in January 2019, while Cyprus' Interior Ministry told AP it could not comment on his citizenship because of confidentiality rules.
The blast in Monaco left three members of one family injured, including a woman in critical condition, and prompted a manhunt for a suspect seen fleeing towards France. Authorities said the family appeared to have been deliberately targeted, but the motive and those behind the attack were still unknown.
With PTI Inputs
An explosion at the entrance to an apartment building in Monaco injured a Ukrainian tycoon with ties to Russia and two family members, authorities said on Tuesday. Prosecutor Stéphane Thibault said police were searching for a suspect who fled on foot after the blast late on Monday, and that the motive was not yet clear.
Media reports identified one of the injured as Ukrainian-born construction and real estate businessman Vadym Yermolaiev. Authorities did not officially name the three injured people, but Monaco's minister of state Christophe Mirmand said, "It appears that the family was specifically targeted," adding that surveillance footage showed the suspect had "walked around the area several times while waiting for the victims".
The blast took place at about 9 pm on Monday at the entrance of a residence near the French border. According to Mirmand, the three were "apparently returning home peacefully" and "were caught in the explosion as they crossed the threshold of their apartment building". Thibault said the woman who was injured was in a life-threatening condition. Mirmand told French broadcaster LCI that she was being treated at a hospital in Nice, while her partner and a 13-year-old child suffered less severe injuries but remained in hospital on Tuesday.
Monaco police opened an attempted murder investigation, though Thibault said the case was not being treated as a terrorism investigation. Mirmand said the family were regular residents of Monaco and authorities did not yet know whether they had received threats in the past. Surveillance footage showed the suspect escaping by steps to a small street leading to the neighbouring French town of Beausoleil. In an image published by French media, the suspect was seen wearing a black jacket, light-coloured trousers, white shoes and a black bucket hat partly covering the face.
Prince Albert II described the blast as "an odious act" and said all public services had been mobilised to ensure security. The attack shocked Monaco, a wealthy Mediterranean principality known for its concentration of rich residents, tax-friendly system and Formula 1 Grand Prix. It is widely seen as one of the safest places in the world, helped by a network of thousands of surveillance cameras. Monaco has a population of about 38,000, and only about a fifth are citizens of the principality.
It remained unclear why the family was targeted or who was behind the attack. Russia has a long history of targeting its enemies abroad, and Western intelligence officials have recently said such targeted killings have increased since President Vladimir Putin's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Ukraine is also believed to have carried out attacks and targeted killings of Russian figures during the war, though those have largely been limited to Ukrainian or Russian territory. Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said its embassy in France, which also handles Monaco, was in touch with local authorities and that Ukrainian diplomats were at the scene to provide assistance.
Yermolaiev, who was born in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, built his fortune through the Alef Group, whose businesses include commercial real estate, manufacturing and agriculture. He became one of Ukraine's best-known property developers and has regularly featured in rankings of the country's wealthiest entrepreneurs. In an interview with Forbes Ukraine, Yermolaiev said he gave up his Ukrainian citizenship and became a Cypriot citizen in 2017. In December 2023, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy imposed sanctions on him as part of a wider package targeting people and companies Kyiv said had business links to Russia or Russian-occupied territories. Cyprus company records list a Vadym Iermolaiev as a director of Vespano Ltd. in Limassol, registered in January 2019, while Cyprus' Interior Ministry told AP it could not comment on his citizenship because of confidentiality rules.
The blast in Monaco left three members of one family injured, including a woman in critical condition, and prompted a manhunt for a suspect seen fleeing towards France. Authorities said the family appeared to have been deliberately targeted, but the motive and those behind the attack were still unknown.
With PTI Inputs
