Monaco Authorities Identify Suspect in Bombing Attempt

The public prosecutor's office in Monaco revealed on Thursday the identification of a suspect connected to the investigation of an attempted assassination involving an explosive device targeting a businessman of Ukrainian origin on Monday evening in the principality.

The prosecutor's office stated, "An arrest warrant has been issued for the suspect, and Interpol will issue a red notice against them starting this evening."

According to French media outlets Le Figaro and BFMTV, the suspect captured on surveillance footage, who concealed their head with a black bucket hat, is a woman disguised as a man.

Monaco's public prosecutor, Stéphane Thibault, did not clarify this detail in his statement but announced that he will hold a press conference on Friday at 11:30.

Thibault praised the performance of Monaco's police forces and the "effective international criminal cooperation, both at police and judicial levels, which enabled the rapid identification of the suspect responsible for this act."

A judicial investigation has been opened on charges including attempted assassination, assigned to three investigating judges.

The Monaco authorities have not confirmed the identities of the victims of the bomb explosion, which occurred on Monday in the lobby of a residential building and detonated as three residents—a couple and their 13-year-old son—entered; all three were injured.

Multiple sources have reported that the attack targeted Vadim Yermolayev, a 58-year-old very wealthy businessman of Ukrainian origin who holds Cypriot citizenship.

According to several sources, Ukraine has imposed sanctions on Yermolayev since December 2023 due to his continued commercial activities in the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula.