Who is behind the assassination attempt on the Ukrainian millionaire in Monaco?
A CNN investigation reveals the sequence of events surrounding the assassination attempt on the Ukrainian millionaire in Monaco, the suspect's flight, and her mysterious murder days after the attack. The mother of the murdered suspect: 'What have you done, my daughter?'
On June 29, a bomb exploded at the entrance to the luxury apartment of Ukrainian millionaire Vadym Yermolaiev in quiet Monaco. The explosion left him seriously injured and stunned the residents of the principality. While security forces initially described the suspect as a man in a black balaclava, it was revealed three days later that the perpetrator was Anastasia Berezovska, a 39-year-old Ukrainian single mother with a large snake tattoo on her arm.
Berezovska had no criminal record, no known connection to Yermolaiev, and no clear motive. A week after authorities identified her as the bomber, she was found dead in a makeshift grave in a forest near Kyiv.
Yermolaiev, who underwent several surgeries, struggles to understand why he was targeted. In his first interview since the incident, he stated he never had enemies and always avoided confrontation: "I don't understand why." Sources close to the investigation suggest Berezovska was a low-level operative acting for money. The identity of the mastermind behind the plot remains unknown.
The investigation shows Berezovska planned the operation carefully. Previously living as a refugee in Hofheim, Germany, she faced financial difficulties, having sued her second husband for alimony in 2022. Weeks before the Monaco trip, she sent her son to Ukraine and began surveilling Yermolaiev. Security footage captured her at the scene multiple times between June 26 and the day of the explosion.
Though she wore a balaclava to hide her identity, she was eventually caught on camera in regular clothes, revealing her face and the distinctive tattoo. After the blast, she fled through France, Italy, and Germany, crossing into Ukraine on July 1 before being officially flagged as a suspect. By the time her name and photo were circulated globally, she had already returned home.
On July 3, after her identity became public, Berezovska asked her mother to drive her to a gas station, where she entered a black BMW occupied by Vladislav Raut and Vitaly Zhikovich. Investigators claim these men had been paying her for months. A shocking twist emerged: Raut was an active military intelligence officer at the time, while Zhikovich, a former law enforcement official, allegedly maintained a "torture chamber" in his basement.
Raut confessed to participating in Berezovska's murder, claiming he acted without his commanders' knowledge. He alleged that Zhikovich tricked him into believing Berezovska was in danger before shooting her in a forest near the village of Yuriv. The men buried her and destroyed evidence, including the weapon. Raut later led authorities to the grave. The central question of who ordered the attack on Yermolaiev remains unanswered.
