Parcel bomb wounds Ukrainian businessman and family in Monaco as cross-border manhunt continues

A parcel bomb packed with bolts and metal buckshot detonated in the entrance lobby of a residential building in Monaco on Monday evening, seriously wounding Ukrainian businessman Vadym Iermolaiev and two family members in what authorities described as the principality's first attack of its kind, with the suspected bomber still being sought across the border in France on Tuesday morning.

The explosion struck shortly before 21:00 local time on Rue Révérend Père Louis Frolla, a street running close to Monaco's border with France, Monaco's government confirmed. The two adults were taken to hospital in Nice with life-threatening injuries; a 13-year-old who was also wounded suffered less serious injuries, Monaco's Minister of State Christophe Mirmand told reporters. Four further people were treated for shock and cuts from windows shattered by the blast, the government said.

A source close to the investigation identified one of the adults to AFP as Iermolaiev, a Cypriot citizen of Ukrainian origin and the founder of the Dnipro-based Alef Corporation, whose pre-war assets were estimated by Forbes Ukraine at around $220 million. French broadcaster BFM TV and Ukrainian outlet Ukrainska Pravda separately named Iermolaiev as the target. His partner and the teenager were also among the injured, Mirmand said, describing the teenager as "very likely related" to the couple. Monaco's Attorney General Stéphane Thibault confirmed to FranceInfo that a suspect had been seen leaving a bag or package in the building's lobby before departing.

Cross-border manhunt

CCTV footage captured the suspect fleeing on foot towards Beausoleil, the French commune that borders Monaco, the Monaco government said in a statement on X. The suspect's face was partially concealed in the footage, Ukrainska Pravda reported, citing investigators. By Tuesday morning the manhunt had expanded to involve around 40 French gendarmes and two helicopters, Ukrainska Pravda and CNN reported, citing the principality's own police alongside the French deployment.

An aide to France's Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said police were working "to find the perpetrator, who has fled", AFP reported. Monaco and France share no border checks, meaning the suspect was able to cross without impediment once out of the principality's camera range.

Monaco authorities activated the "Red Plan" — the principality's emergency protocol for incidents causing multiple casualties — and around 50 firefighters and 80 security personnel were deployed at the scene, Euronews reported.

Prince Albert II condemns attack

Prince Albert II, Monaco's head of state, described the incident as a "heinous act" and "a shock to the entire Monegasque community", saying all state services had been mobilised in coordination with French authorities, according to multiple reports citing his statement.

Mirmand, asked at a late-night press conference whether the explosion could be treated as an assassination attempt, replied: "We can assume it." He added that intelligence services were working to understand the victims' background and to "determine if others might be facing specific threats". Thibault was separately quoted by CBS News as having said that a terrorist motive — in the sense of a politically or ideologically motivated attack — had been ruled out.

"This is the first time in history, to my knowledge, that such an act has taken place in the principality," Mirmand said.

Who is Vadym Iermolaiev?

Iermolaiev, born in Dnipro in 1968, built his fortune in real estate and manufacturing through the Alef Corporation, a diversified conglomerate that at its height encompassed construction materials, agribusiness, wine and spirits production, and medical devices, according to Kyiv Post and open4business.com.ua. He appeared on Forbes Ukraine's list of the country's wealthiest individuals, with assets estimated at around $220 million in 2021.

He renounced his Ukrainian citizenship and obtained Cypriot nationality in 2019, according to most available sources, and relocated to Monaco after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, French newspaper Le Figaro reported, as cited by multiple outlets.

In December 2023, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed Presidential Decree No. 850 imposing a 10-year sanctions package against Iermolaiev, blocking his assets and revoking licences. The sanctions followed an investigation by Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) into alleged business activity in Russian-occupied Crimea through his Alef-Vinal-Crimea alcohol subsidiary, according to open4business.com.ua and Ukrainska Pravda. Iermolaiev has denied wrongdoing, Ynet News reported.

No motive for the attack has been formally established. Investigators have not publicly linked the sanctions or any specific dispute to the bombing, and the suspect's identity remains unknown at the time of writing.

This is a developing story.