Businessman injured in Monaco blast claims Ukraine's Defence Intelligence attempted to kill him and his family, seeks protection

Vadym Yermolaiev, a Ukrainian businessman subject to sanctions who was injured in an explosion in Monaco, has accused Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU) of orchestrating the attempt to kill him and his family and has requested protection for all of them.

Source: French regional newspaper Nice-Matin

Details: Nice-Matin reported that a letter that Yermolaiev wrote regarding this has been made public by the law firm Dynasty Law & Investment, which represents the businessman. The authenticity of the document was also confirmed by Yermolaiev's lawyer in Monaco.

Quote from the letter: "In light of the findings of the investigation that have been shared with us, we are convinced that serving officers from the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence, known by the acronym DIU, are directly involved in this assassination attempt. The evidence currently available also suggests that the operation is not limited to the perpetrators and direct organisers, but involves DIU officers, some of whom are reportedly close to the service's current or former leadership."

More details: Yermolaiev said: "I fully appreciate the seriousness of these accusations." and is making them public because he believes "they must be the subject of a thorough, independent and transparent investigation".

"If serving intelligence officers use their official position, resources or networks to organise the murder of a family on European soil, it is no longer merely a crime against my own family. It is a matter of international security and trust in our institutions," Yermolaiev wrote.

Although Yermolaiev's claims are directed against Ukrainian intelligence, he also expressed his "sincere" gratitude to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy "for the personal attention he has given to this matter and for the assistance already provided".

He also stressed that "this statement is directed neither against Ukraine nor against the Ukrainian people".

Quote: "Ukraine depends on the trust of its allies. No institution, no intelligence service and no state official can be placed above the law. My lawyers and I will continue to fully cooperate with the investigating authorities and provide them with any information that may help establish the truth."

More details: Yermolaiev has also called on the authorities in Monaco, Ukraine and France, as well as the relevant international institutions, to guarantee protection for his family, loved ones, witnesses, lawyers and everyone involved in the case, "until all those responsible, including whoever instigated this crime, are identified and held accountable".

Reflecting on the 29 June explosion in the Principality of Monaco, Yermolaiev said the perpetrators saw his wife and child beside him, suggesting that "their goal was to kill all three of us, regardless of age or gender".

For reference: Vadym Yermolaiev, a businessman from Dnipro, founded the Alef industrial and commercial group and is one of the city's largest property developers. He previously featured regularly on Forbes Ukraine's list of the country's 100 richest people. In 2019, he renounced his Ukrainian citizenship in favour of Cypriot citizenship.

Background:

• At around 21:00 on 29 June, three people were injured in an explosion in Monaco, two of them critically. Ukrainska Pravda sources in business circles said the victims included Yermolaiev and people close to him.
• The explosion triggered a large-scale manhunt for the suspect believed to have planted the explosive device. Initially, investigators believed the suspect was a man captured on surveillance cameras who had fled to France. Journalists later reported that the suspect was in fact a woman who may have disguised herself as a man.
• Media reports suggested that investigators in Monaco are examining a possible link between the attempted assassination of Yermolaiev and the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU).
• On 3 July, Interpol issued a Red Notice for 39-year-old Ukrainian national Anastasiia Berezovska. According to Monaco's law enforcement authorities, she was suspected of planting the explosive device that seriously injured Yermolaiev and his family members.
• On 7 July, it was reported that Berezovska had been found dead, buried near Kyiv.
• Ukraine's National Police, the SSU, DIU and the Office of the Prosecutor General have detained two people on suspicion of murdering the woman. Investigators looked into the two men as possible accomplices in the attempted murder in Monaco after discovering that both had repeatedly transferred money to Berezovska via cryptocurrency and bank accounts.
• An investigation has established that Anastasiia Berezovska was killed near the village of Yuriv, Kyiv Oblast, by DIU officer Vladyslav Reut and his accomplice Vitalii Zhykovych, a former SSU officer, on 3 July.
• On 9 July, Kyiv's Pechersk District Court remanded murder suspects Reut and Zhykovych in custody without the option of bail.
• Ukrainska Pravda sources familiar with the investigation said that Ukrainian investigators believe the organisers of the 29 June Monaco explosion are Vitalii Zhykovych and Vladyslav Reut, the handlers and suspected murderers of Anastasiia Berezovska.

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