Ukraine Spy Agency Caught in Crosshairs After Monaco Bombing Suspect Found Dead
A woman wanted for a brazen bombing attack on a Ukrainian oligarch in Monaco is found dead in the woods outside Kyiv. Two intelligence operatives are arrested. Then one changes his story. This is a spy thriller playing out in real time.
KYIV, Ukraine — It reads like the plot of a Cold War novel. A parcel bomb in Monaco. A female suspect who flees across Europe. A body found in a shallow grave. And two intelligence officers – one active, one former – caught in a web of cryptocurrency payments, conflicting confessions, and allegations of a torture chamber.
But this is not fiction. This is the stunning case of Anastasiia Berezovska, a 39-year-old Ukrainian woman who went from being the target of an Interpol manhunt to a murder victim in a matter of days. And the investigation is now threatening to become an international embarrassment for Ukraine.
The Monaco Bombing
It all started on June 29, 2026, when a powerful explosion rocked a residential building in Monaco, the wealthy principality known for its royal family, tax havens, and the Formula 1 Grand Prix. The blast, caused by a remote-controlled explosive device hidden in a bag, seriously wounded three people: Ukrainian-born property tycoon Vadym Yermolaiev, his partner, and their 13-year-old son.
Security camera footage showed a suspect in a black jacket, baseball cap, and white shoes fleeing the scene toward the French town of Beausoleil. Investigators later determined the suspect was a woman disguised as a man. That woman was Berezovska.
Interpol issued a Red Notice for her arrest. Monaco authorities charged her with attempted murder, placing an explosive device in a public place with criminal intent, and criminal conspiracy. The sophisticated nature of the device led investigators to believe multiple people were involved.
A Suspect Returns Home
Two days after the bombing, Berezovska crossed into Ukraine by bus from Poland. At that point, she had not yet been publicly identified as the prime suspect. But authorities were closing in.
Working from Berezovska’s phone records, Ukrainian investigators quickly homed in on two men: Vladyslav Reut, 34, a decorated officer of Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (GUR), and Vitalii Zhykovych, 50, a former officer of the SBU security service. Investigators identified cash and cryptocurrency transfers that the two had made to Berezovska’s accounts.
The trail led to a grim discovery.
The Confession – and the Grave
According to Ukrainian authorities, Reut confessed to shooting Berezovska. He then led investigators to a wooded area west of Kyiv, where he had buried her body in a shallow grave covered with branches. The body had gunshot wounds to the head. Cartridges were found nearby.
But the case took a dramatic turn just days later.
The Retraction
During a custody hearing in a Kyiv court on July 10, Reut did an about-face. Surrounded by heavily armed security officers in balaclavas, with his face hidden behind a mask so large only his eyes were visible, Reut announced he wanted to “tell the truth”.
He “categorically denied” committing the murder. Instead, he blamed his co-defendant Zhykovych.
Reut’s New Story
In Reut’s revised version, the two men drove in his BMW to pick up Berezovska on the highway because she “needed to be hidden” in connection with “a criminal matter”. On the way, Reut claims Zhykovych produced a modified Makarov pistol from his rucksack.
After collecting Berezovska, Reut says he was directed to drive toward the village of Yuriv. All three got out on a forest path. There, Reut claims Zhykovych ordered him to shoot, saying: “It’s either her or us”.
In Reut’s telling, Zhykovych then killed Berezovska himself, firing four shots. The pair then dug a grave and hid her body. Zhykovych threw the gun into a nearby lake along with her belongings.
Why the Confession?
If Reut didn’t pull the trigger, why did he confess? He now says he was threatened by Zhykovych. “He said, ‘If anything happens to me, your relatives are in danger,'” Reut claims.
But Reut also offered a pointed defense of his character: “I fought enemy combatants while defending my country. I would never intentionally murder an innocent civilian woman”.
Zhykovych’s lawyer has rejected Reut’s new account.
More Twists
The case keeps getting darker. Authorities said the basement of Zhykovych’s home appeared to have been used as a torture chamber.
Both men have been ordered held without bail. Ukraine’s Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko has called for a joint investigation with Monaco, promising that Ukraine is “open to full cooperation”.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has promised “additional relevant reports” in the coming days.
A Sanctioned Target
The motive for the original bombing remains unclear. Yermolaiev, who made his fortune in cognac and real estate, renounced his Ukrainian citizenship years ago and took Cypriot nationality. In 2023, Ukraine sanctioned him for continuing to do business in Crimea after Russia’s annexation. He has not lived in Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Some Ukrainian media have suggested the attack may be linked to Yermolaiev’s alleged role in a fraudulent call center network, though he has denied the allegations.
A Diplomatic Headache
The case has become a major embarrassment for Ukraine. Lawmakers are worried about how Western allies will react to a possible assassination attempt in Monaco linked to at least one member of Ukraine’s military intelligence agency.
“I hope it will not have a serious impact. But our allies deserve an explanation,” said Oleksandr Merezhko, a lawmaker from Zelensky’s party.
The Bottom Line
What began as a sophisticated bombing in one of Europe’s most exclusive enclaves has spiraled into a murky saga of spies, shifting allegiances, and a killing that raises more questions than answers.
The core mystery remains: Why was Berezovska killed? Was she silenced to prevent her from talking? And who really pulled the trigger?
For now, the answers lie buried in the woods outside Kyiv – and in the conflicting accounts of two intelligence operatives who may know more than they’re telling.
