Parcel bomb in Monaco: Interpol searches for 39-year-old Ukrainian woman residing in Hesse

The Monegasque public prosecutor's office subsequently identified a suspect and announced on Thursday that an arrest warrant had been issued against her. "Die gesuchte Frau befindet sich aktuell auf der Flucht", it was said from Monaco. Interpol issued an international search notice for the woman and published a photo showing a woman with shoulder-length brown hair wearing a black-and-white striped T-shirt. According to the international notice, the person sought speaks German, and there is a tattoo on her right upper arm which authorities believe to be a snake.

Arrest warrant and international search

The suspect is being sought by arrest warrant on charges including attempted murder, placing an explosive device with criminal intent, and membership in a criminal organization. "Die Frau habe die Tat vermutlich nicht alleine geplant", said Monaco's Deputy Prosecutor General Morgan Raymond at a press conference. The construction of the explosive device had been "ziemlich komplex"; it is therefore assumed that other persons were involved. Investigators were searching for possible accomplices and masterminds.

According to French media reports, the suspicion is directed at a woman who may have passed herself off as a man. Surveillance images had previously shown a person in a black hat at the crime scene who was initially believed to be a man. "Anders als zunächst gedacht, handle es sich bei der verdächtigen Person um eine Frau und nicht um einen Mann", said Raymond. When leaving the package, the suspect had been "als Mann verkleidet", it was further stated. According to the investigations, the Ukrainian had visited the crime scene several times beforehand.

Search for evidence in Hesse

Following the explosion, the woman reportedly fled with a rental car bearing German license plates via France and Italy to Germany. Leads on the whereabouts of the sought person brought the Monegasque investigators to the Hessian Main-Taunus district area. On Thursday, "eine von der Ukrainerin angemieteten Wohnung im hessischen Main-Taunus-Kreis durchsucht", as the Frankfurt am Main public prosecutor's office, the Hessian State Office of Criminal Investigation (LKA) in Wiesbaden and the Prosecutor General's Office jointly announced on Friday. "Die Aktion sei im Rahmen eines Rechtshilfeersuchens durch deutsche Beamte erfolgt, darunter Spezialeinsatzkräfte".

During the search, "ein von ihr genutztes Fahrzeug durchsucht und sichergestellt" was also searched and seized. The secured evidence was handed over to the Monegasque authorities. "Die hessischen Sicherheitsbehörden unterstützen die monegassischen Behörden bei den Ermittlungen und stehen hierzu in engem Austausch", the LKA Hesse stated. Two men provisionally arrested on Wednesday and Thursday were released again, "da sich ein Tatverdacht nicht erhärtet habe".

The seriously injured businessman is, according to media reports, Vadym Yermolayev, a 58-year-old multimillionaire of Ukrainian origin. "Jermolajew hatte sich in der ostukrainischen Stadt Dnipro als skrupelloser Immobilienunternehmer einen Namen gemacht", the agencies write. He has reportedly been one of the 100 richest people in Ukraine for years. In Ukraine, he is considered part of the so-called "Monaco battalion," a group of businessmen and former oligarchs who settled on the Mediterranean coast after the start of the Russian war of aggression.

Background: Who is Vadym Yermolayev?

According to reports, Yermolayev had given up Ukrainian citizenship years ago and is now a Cypriot citizen. "Berichten zufolge hat er inzwischen die Staatsbürgerschaft des EU-Landes Zypern" angenommen, it is said; another source dates the acquisition to 2019. "Seit 2023 unterliegt Jermolajew in der Ukraine Sanktionen wegen seiner geschäftlichen Aktivitäten auf der von Russland annektierten Krim." Ukrainian media attribute the sanctions precisely to these business activities on the peninsula.

Prince Albert II of Monaco condemned the attack as an "abscheuliche Tat". The exact background of the crime remains unclear. It is still open, among other things, whether economic, personal or political motives played a role; possible connections to Ukraine or Russia are also being examined. The Frankfurt Prosecutor General's Office and the LKA Hesse initially declined to comment beyond the information already published on the identification of the injured and the status of the search.

The search is being conducted internationally. Interpol has issued a warrant for the 39-year-old Anastasija B. on charges of attempted murder. According to media reports, the woman is said to live in Germany and is being sought by circulated description. Should she be arrested in Hesse or another German federal state, she could be extradited to Monaco on the basis of the international arrest warrant.

In Monaco itself, the public prosecutor's office has opened an investigation on charges including attempted murder and other offenses. The case is considered one of the most serious attacks in the principality in years. The authorities of Monaco, Hesse and Interpol are working closely together, according to their own statements, to find the fugitive suspect and identify any accomplices.

Investigations and outlook

According to Interpol, the search is explicitly directed at the pictured woman with shoulder-length brown hair and a black-and-white striped T-shirt. The tattoo on the right upper arm – presumably a snake – as well as the sought person's German language skills are further identifying features. Investigators are asking for tips from the public; possible whereabouts are conceivable both in Hesse and in other European countries.

The search for possible accomplices and masterminds is ongoing. The construction of the explosive device and the fact that the device was detonated remotely suggest, in the assessment of the Monegasque public prosecutor's office, that the crime may have been prepared by several persons. The suspect's repeated visits to the later crime scene also point to a longer planning phase.

The attack has caused a major stir in Monaco, but also in Ukraine and Germany. Yermolayev was considered a well-known figure in the exile networks of Ukrainian businessmen on the Côte d'Azur. The family circumstances – the businessman, his partner and their shared 13-year-old son – have brought the humanitarian dimension of the crime to the fore. Official bodies emphasize that the investigations are being continued with great intensity.