‘Booby-trapped package’ explodes in Monaco, injuring Ukrainian oligarch
The attack shocked the country on the Mediterranean coast, one of the world’s smallest sovereign states known for its high concentration of ultra-wealthy residents.
An explosion — reportedly caused by a parcel bomb — in the lobby of an apartment building in Monaco wounded Ukrainian business magnate Vadym Lermolaiev and two other people, and several others were hit by shards of glass, a senior lawmaker in the principality said Tuesday.
A search was underway for a suspect who fled on foot after the blast late Monday, Prosecutor Stéphane Thibault said during a press conference from the Salle des Juridictions Suprêmes in Monaco.
Two of the victims were transported to a hospital in the French city of Nice, about 20 km from the sovereign city-state, Monaco’s Minister of State Christoph Mirmand told French media outlet TF1.
“A woman with very serious injuries, whose life is in danger, was taken to the hospital in Nice this evening,” he stated.
“Her partner and a 13-year-old child” had “less serious injuries” but are “still receiving treatment at the hospital,” he added, noting that it appeared to be a targeted attack, not a terror incident.
He did not give the identities of the woman or child who were hurt, but referred to them as “family members,” who are regular residents of Monaco.
Mirmand also said they did not yet know whether they had been threatened in the past or why they were targeted.
A suspect was spotted by security cameras fleeing toward the municipality of Beausoleil on French territory, the Monaco government said in a statement shared on X on Monday evening, shortly after the “booby-trapped” package exploded.
In a picture published by French media, the suspect could be seen on a street wearing a black jacket, light-coloured pants, white shoes, and a black bucket hat that partly concealed his face, the Associated Press reported.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said its embassy in France, which is also responsible for Monaco, was in touch with local authorities. Ukrainian diplomats were at the scene providing assistance, it said.
Vadym Lermolaiev is a business tycoon and real estate developer who in 2023 was sanctioned by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for reportedly trading alcohol in Russian-occupied Crimea and paying millions in taxes to the Russian treasury, The Guardian reported.
He is one of several wealthy Ukrainian exiles who have taken refuge in Monte Carlo and the South of France, it added.
The attack shocked the country on the Mediterranean coast, one of the world’s smallest sovereign states known for being a tax haven and its high concentration of ultra-wealthy residents.
Monaco’s Prince Albert II described it as “an odious act” and said all public services were mobilized to ensure security.
The blast occurred around 9 p.m. Monday at the entrance of a residence near the French border.