New details have emerged about the mysterious bomb attack on Ukrainian tycoon Vadym Yermolaiev and his girlfriend in Monaco, revealing what amounts to a genuine true crime thriller surrounding the case.

In an extensive report, CNN reconstructs the events leading up to the attack, tracing the movements of the woman authorities regard as their chief suspect, her escape route to Ukraine, and the evidence linking the case to two men now at the centre of the investigation.

The report also details the financial transactions under scrutiny by investigators and a series of unanswered questions about who was truly behind the operation.

Ukraine's Intelligence (SBU) recovered footage of the assassination attempt on Ukrainian oligarch Vadym Yermolaiev in Monaco.

The hitmen had planted a camera near the scene to prove the job was done, then tried to destroy the recording. pic.twitter.com/x1LxHd4Dwo

— Clash Report (@clashreport) July 17, 2026

The attack, and a twist over the identity of the attacker

The explosion took place on 29 June, when an explosive device detonated at the entrance of a luxury residential complex in Monaco, seriously injuring Yermolaiev along with two other people who were with him, a woman and a child.

Investigators initially believed the attacker was a man wearing a black hat. However, analysis of security camera footage brought a dramatic twist to the case.

According to authorities, the person captured on camera was 39-year-old Ukrainian national Anastasiia Berezovska, who is alleged to have disguised herself as a man to conceal her identity.

Monegasque authorities say the woman had carried out reconnaissance before the attack, keeping watch on the area around the Ukrainian oligarch’s home. She was identified partly through a distinctive tattoo on her arm and partly through security footage capturing her movements.

🚨 BREAKING: Anastasiia Berezovska, the Ukrainian woman who is wanted in connection with the bombing that took place in Monaco on Tuesday, has been found dead in Ukraine.

The attack targeted Ukrainian businessman Vadym Yermolaiev, who has links to Russia. pic.twitter.com/A4x4iJQlM4

— The Mercian (@TheMercianNews) July 7, 2026

According to CNN, Berezovska had no criminal record and no known connection to Yermolaiev. She had been living as a refugee in Germany, near Frankfurt, and was the mother of a young child.

Investigators are examining whether she was the operative carrying out a larger operation. The key question that remains is who gave the order, and what the true motive behind the attack was.

The 7,000 euros, the murder in the forest and the two men

After the attack in Monaco, Berezovska is reported to have followed an escape route through several European countries.

According to the investigation, she left the principality, travelled through France and Italy, reached Germany and then returned to Ukraine via Poland, crossing the border before authorities managed to identify her as a suspect.

Her return to Ukraine did not close the case. Instead, a few days later Berezovska was found dead in a wooded area near Kyiv, opening a new chapter in the investigation.

Ukrainian authorities focused on two men believed to be linked to her death, among them Vladyslav Reut, an officer with Ukraine’s GUR military intelligence directorate.

Berezovska had returned to the village of Horodyshche, near Zhytomyr, where she was born and where her mother still lives. According to court documents, on 3 July she asked her mother to drive her to a nearby petrol station. From there she called a taxi and gave the driver a specific location via GPS, on a road towards Kyiv.

According to prosecutors, she was picked up at that location by a black BMW. Inside the car were Vladyslav Reut and Vitalii Zhykovych, who are now key figures in the investigation into her murder.

Ukrainian authorities say the two men had been in contact with Berezovska before the Monaco attack and had sent her money through bank transfers and cryptocurrency. Zhykovych’s lawyer said these transactions amounted to between 6,000 and 7,000 euros in total.

Zhykovych’s defence maintains that he believed he was taking part in a secret mission linked to Ukrainian intelligence services. Ukrainian authorities, however, deny any state involvement in the case.

Reut’s presence further complicates the case, since he was serving with the GUR at the time of the Monaco attack. He has admitted taking part in Berezovska’s killing but claimed he had not received orders from his superiors.

Zhykovych, for his part, had previous experience in law enforcement, having previously worked as a volunteer officer for Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU).

Un officier du renseignement militaire ukrainien (HUR) qui a avoué le meurtre d'Anastasia Berezovska a été placé en détention provisoire sans caution
Selon les enquêteurs, l'agent de HUR Vladyslav Reut et l'ancien agent des forces de l'ordre Vitalii Zhykovych ont conduit… pic.twitter.com/CqNYsAje4S

— LesNews (@LesNews) July 9, 2026

The final journey into the forest

The two men have given differing accounts of what happened after their meeting with Berezovska.

Reut told the court that Zhykovych had a gun with him and that the woman was taken to a wooded area near the village of Yuriv. There, according to his testimony, Berezovska was shot several times in the head.

Initially, according to prosecutors, Reut had confessed to shooting Berezovska on Zhykovych’s orders. He later changed his account, claiming that Zhykovych was the one who killed the woman.

Zhykovych’s side rejects this version, with his lawyer arguing that Reut was the organiser and the perpetrator of the murder, and that he is attempting to shift the blame onto his client.

Who wanted Yermolaiev dead?

Vadym Yermolaiev, speaking to CNN after leaving hospital, said he could not understand who would want to kill him. “I never had any enemies,” he said, insisting he has never been involved in criminal activity.

The Ukrainian businessman believes Berezovska was not the mastermind of the operation but someone used by others. “She wasn’t the main player in this story,” he said.

The investigation continues, but the key questions of who is behind the Monaco attack and who gave the order to target Yermolaiev remain unanswered.