Manhunt under way after Ukrainian-born tycoon injured by Monaco bomb
✓An international search is under way for a suspected bomber after a Ukrainian tycoon and his family were injured in an explosion in Monaco in an unprecedented attack that has shaken the normally ultra-safe principality.
Stéphane Thibault, Monaco’s public prosecutor, told reporters that a man entered an apartment block on Monday evening, left a package in the lobby and walked away. Moments later, as three occupants of a ground-floor flat approached the entrance, the package exploded, he said.
French media identified the three as Vadym Iermolaiev, his wife and their 13-year-old child. Iermolaiev and his wife had been taken to hospital with serious injuries, while their child was also wounded, French authorities said.
Without naming them, Thibault said the woman remained in a life-threatening condition, the man was no longer in a critical condition and the child’s injuries were not considered life-threatening.
Photographs online showed the entrance of the luxury apartment building damaged by the blast. CCTV footage showed the suspect fleeing towards the French border shortly after the explosion. French media published a video image of the alleged bomber, who was seen wearing a dark top and a bucket hat.
Prosecutors in Monaco said they had opened an attempted murder investigation into the attack but were not qualifying it as terrorism. A second “mirror” investigation had been opened in France, with the motive still unclear.
Ukraine’s foreign ministry said its embassy in France, which is also responsible for Monaco, was in touch with local authorities. Ukrainian diplomats were at the scene providing assistance, it said.
Prince Albert II of Monaco condemned the bombing as “an odious act” and said all the principality’s security services had been mobilised.
Christophe Mirmand, Monaco’s minister of state, described the bombing as unprecedented and urged “extreme vigilance” to ensure the investigation progressed as quickly as possible. “To my knowledge, this is the first time in history that such an act has taken place in the principality,” he told a press conference.
The victims were “regular” Monaco residents, but investigators had not established whether the family had previously been threatened, Mirmand said.
“It appears the family was specifically targeted,” he said, adding that surveillance footage showed the suspected attacker walking around the area several times while waiting for the victims.
Mirmand said the suspect’s whereabouts remained unknown. “It is very easy to get from the principality of Monaco to the town of Beausoleil – you just have to cross a street – so at this stage it would be difficult to tell you exactly where the suspect is,” he said.
The minister added that emergency services had treated four other people for shock and cuts from windows shattered in the blast.
Iermolaiev, originally from the south-eastern Ukrainian city of Dnipro, founded the Alef trade and industrial corporation and became one of the region’s most influential property developers and businessmen.
Once ranked among Forbes Ukraine’s 100 richest Ukrainians, he renounced his Ukrainian citizenship in 2019 in favour of Cypriot nationality. Ukraine imposed sanctions on him in 2023, alleging he had maintained business links with Russian entities operating in Ukrainian territories occupied by Moscow, including Crimea, which Russia illegally annexed in 2014.
Iermolaiev was not known for espousing pro-Russian views. After Moscow’s full-scale invasion in 2022, he said his Gulfstream G150 private jet had been destroyed in a Russian missile strike on Dnipro airport.
In a 2024 interview with Forbes Ukraine, Iermolaiev said he had given up his Ukrainian citizenship because he wanted “international protection”. “The Ukrainian judicial system, to put it mildly, is not ideal, and the tax system is not objective,” he told the magazine.
Some Ukrainian media outlets speculated that the bombing may have been orchestrated by organised crime groups and tied to scam-call operations in Dnipro, in which members of Iermolaiev’s family have been implicated.
The Ukrainian news outlet Ukrainska Pravda reported that Iermolaiev had been living in Monaco since the start of the invasion.
Monday’s attack has stunned the wealthy Mediterranean enclave, where violent crime is exceptionally rare.
A resident living near the building told the French outlet Nice-Matin that the blast had sent shock waves through the neighbourhood. “The noise was horrible … In Monaco, we’re not used to this kind of event. We’re still in shock,” they said.
Best known for its luxury lifestyle, low-tax regime and annual Formula One Grand Prix, Monaco has long attracted billionaires, celebrities and business elites from around the world. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it has also become home to a number of wealthy Ukrainians, a group dubbed the “Monaco Battalion” by independent Ukrainian media.
Read the full story at BBC ↗ · NPR ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · Sky News ↗
An explosion at a Monaco apartment building injured three people on Monday evening: Vadym Iermolaiev, a Ukrainian-born property developer and businessman; his wife, who sustained life-threatening injuries; and their 13-year-old child. A man left a package in the lobby and departed; it detonated as residents approached the entrance. CCTV footage showed the suspected attacker fleeing toward the French border. Monaco's authorities say the family was specifically targeted, though the motive remains unclear. Prosecutors opened an attempted murder investigation but have not classified the attack as terrorism. Iermolaiev, originally from Dnipro, founded a major trade and industrial corporation and was once listed among Ukraine's 100 richest people. He renounced Ukrainian citizenship in 2019 for Cypriot nationality and has lived in Monaco since Russia's 2022 invasion. Ukraine imposed sanctions on him in 2023 over alleged business links to Russian entities in occupied territories. The attack is the first violent bombing in Monaco's recorded history. Prince Albert II called it an 'odious act' and activated all security services. Investigators have found no evidence of prior threats to the family.
Read the full story at BBC ↗ · NPR ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · Sky News ↗
An international search is under way for a suspected bomber after a Ukrainian tycoon and his family were injured in an explosion in Monaco in an unprecedented attack that has shaken the normally ultra-safe principality.
Stéphane Thibault, Monaco’s public prosecutor, told reporters that a man entered an apartment block on Monday evening, left a package in the lobby and walked away. Moments later, as three occupants of a ground-floor flat approached the entrance, the package exploded, he said.
French media identified the three as Vadym Iermolaiev, his wife and their 13-year-old child. Iermolaiev and his wife had been taken to hospital with serious injuries, while their child was also wounded, French authorities said.
Without naming them, Thibault said the woman remained in a life-threatening condition, the man was no longer in a critical condition and the child’s injuries were not considered life-threatening.
Photographs online showed the entrance of the luxury apartment building damaged by the blast. CCTV footage showed the suspect fleeing towards the French border shortly after the explosion. French media published a video image of the alleged bomber, who was seen wearing a dark top and a bucket hat.
Prosecutors in Monaco said they had opened an attempted murder investigation into the attack but were not qualifying it as terrorism. A second “mirror” investigation had been opened in France, with the motive still unclear.
Ukraine’s foreign ministry said its embassy in France, which is also responsible for Monaco, was in touch with local authorities. Ukrainian diplomats were at the scene providing assistance, it said.
Prince Albert II of Monaco condemned the bombing as “an odious act” and said all the principality’s security services had been mobilised.
Christophe Mirmand, Monaco’s minister of state, described the bombing as unprecedented and urged “extreme vigilance” to ensure the investigation progressed as quickly as possible. “To my knowledge, this is the first time in history that such an act has taken place in the principality,” he told a press conference.
The victims were “regular” Monaco residents, but investigators had not established whether the family had previously been threatened, Mirmand said.
“It appears the family was specifically targeted,” he said, adding that surveillance footage showed the suspected attacker walking around the area several times while waiting for the victims.
Mirmand said the suspect’s whereabouts remained unknown. “It is very easy to get from the principality of Monaco to the town of Beausoleil – you just have to cross a street – so at this stage it would be difficult to tell you exactly where the suspect is,” he said.
The minister added that emergency services had treated four other people for shock and cuts from windows shattered in the blast.
Iermolaiev, originally from the south-eastern Ukrainian city of Dnipro, founded the Alef trade and industrial corporation and became one of the region’s most influential property developers and businessmen.
Once ranked among Forbes Ukraine’s 100 richest Ukrainians, he renounced his Ukrainian citizenship in 2019 in favour of Cypriot nationality. Ukraine imposed sanctions on him in 2023, alleging he had maintained business links with Russian entities operating in Ukrainian territories occupied by Moscow, including Crimea, which Russia illegally annexed in 2014.
Iermolaiev was not known for espousing pro-Russian views. After Moscow’s full-scale invasion in 2022, he said his Gulfstream G150 private jet had been destroyed in a Russian missile strike on Dnipro airport.
In a 2024 interview with Forbes Ukraine, Iermolaiev said he had given up his Ukrainian citizenship because he wanted “international protection”. “The Ukrainian judicial system, to put it mildly, is not ideal, and the tax system is not objective,” he told the magazine.
Some Ukrainian media outlets speculated that the bombing may have been orchestrated by organised crime groups and tied to scam-call operations in Dnipro, in which members of Iermolaiev’s family have been implicated.
The Ukrainian news outlet Ukrainska Pravda reported that Iermolaiev had been living in Monaco since the start of the invasion.
Monday’s attack has stunned the wealthy Mediterranean enclave, where violent crime is exceptionally rare.
A resident living near the building told the French outlet Nice-Matin that the blast had sent shock waves through the neighbourhood. “The noise was horrible … In Monaco, we’re not used to this kind of event. We’re still in shock,” they said.
Best known for its luxury lifestyle, low-tax regime and annual Formula One Grand Prix, Monaco has long attracted billionaires, celebrities and business elites from around the world. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it has also become home to a number of wealthy Ukrainians, a group dubbed the “Monaco Battalion” by independent Ukrainian media.
Read the full story at BBC ↗ · NPR ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · Sky News ↗
An explosion at a Monaco apartment building on Monday evening injured Vadym Iermolaiev, his wife, and their 13-year-old child. The wife was in life-threatening condition; the man was no longer in critical condition; the child's injuries were not considered life-threatening. A man placed a package in the lobby of the apartment building and walked away; the package exploded moments later as occupants approached the entrance. CCTV footage showed the suspected attacker fleeing toward the French border shortly after the explosion. Prosecutors opened an attempted murder investigation but did not classify the attack as terrorism. Monaco's minister of state said the attack appears to have specifically targeted the family, with surveillance footage showing the suspect had walked around the area multiple times before the explosion. Iermolaiev founded the Alef trade and industrial corporation and was once ranked among Forbes Ukraine's 100 richest Ukrainians. He renounced Ukrainian citizenship in 2019 and adopted Cypriot nationality, citing desire for 'international protection' and dissatisfaction with Ukrainian judicial and tax systems. Ukraine imposed sanctions on Iermolaiev in 2023, alleging he maintained business links with Russian entities in occupied Ukrainian territories. Iermolaiev said his private jet was destroyed in a Russian missile strike on Dnipro airport after the 2022 invasion. The attack is unprecedented in Monaco's recorded history, shocking a principality where violent crime is exceptionally rare. Some Ukrainian media outlets speculated the bombing may have been orchestrated by organised crime groups tied to scam-call operations in Dnipro, in which members of Iermolaiev's family have been implicated.
Read the full story at BBC ↗ · NPR ↗ · The Guardian ↗ · Sky News ↗
- An explosion at a luxury Monaco apartment building on Monday evening injured a Ukrainian-born businessman, his wife, and their 13-year-old child; the wife remained in life-threatening condition.
- A man placed a package in the lobby and fled; CCTV showed him heading toward the French border. Investigators say the family was specifically targeted but have not established motive.
- The attack is unprecedented in Monaco's history. Prosecutors opened an attempted murder investigation but are not treating it as terrorism. The suspect remains at large.