A parcel bomb explosion in Monaco on Monday night injured at least three people, including Ukrainian businessman Vadym Yermolaiev, authorities confirmed.
The incident, described as an unprecedented attack in the usually secure European principality, occurred at about 9:00 pm local time inside a residential building on a street bordering France.
A couple and a teenager were among those wounded in the blast. A source close to the investigation, who requested anonymity, told AFP that one of the injured victims was Ukrainian national Yermolaiev.
Monaco’s Prince Albert II condemned the incident, calling it a “heinous crime” and saying it was “a shock to the entire Monegasque community.”
An aide to France’s Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said law enforcement agencies were working “to find the perpetrator, who has fled.”
According to Monaco’s Minister of State Christophe Mirmand, the couple, believed to be in their 50s or 60s, sustained life-threatening injuries, while the 13-year-old suffered less severe wounds. Their identities were not released. Mirmand said the teenager was “very likely related” to the couple.
An AFP photographer at the scene reported a significant security operation, with the area sealed off by police and a helicopter flying overhead. Authorities deployed about 50 firefighters and 80 security personnel following the explosion.
Bolts and Buckshot Found in Device
Public prosecutor Stephane Thibault said a suspect was captured on surveillance footage leaving a bag or package in the building’s lobby before departing the area.
He added that there was currently no evidence explaining why the building was selected as a target.
Monaco’s government said the “strong explosion” was caused by a “parcel bomb.”
“A suspect was seen on video surveillance fleeing towards the municipality of Beausoleil in France,” it wrote on X.
Mirmand said witnesses had provided details that could assist investigators in identifying the suspect.
The explosive device appeared to contain bolts and buckshot, according to Mirmand. He added that emergency teams treated four additional people for shock and injuries caused by shattered windows.
“This is the first time in history, to my knowledge, that such an act has taken place in the principality,” he said.
Yermolaiev, a multi-millionaire Monaco resident, has been under sanctions imposed by Kyiv since December 2023. Ukrainian security services reportedly linked the measures to his business activities in the alcohol sector in Russian-occupied Crimea.
Mirmand said intelligence agencies were examining the backgrounds of those involved and working to “determine if others might be facing specific threats.”
He added that the prosecutor would provide a further update during another briefing scheduled for Tuesday.
