Vitalii Zhykovych, a former Ukrainian security service officer and current Kyiv inmate, has denied involvement in a June 29 bomb attack on Ukrainian-born businessman Vadym Yermolayev in Monaco. In an interview with the BBC, Zhykovych claimed that the bombing was proposed by his superior, Vladyslav Reut, who he says had authorization from senior figures at Ukraine’s military intelligence agency. Zhykovych accused Reut of being responsible for sending and allegedly training Anastasiia Berezovska to carry out the attack but denied any direct involvement in planting the bomb or killing Berezovska after she was apprehended.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-09,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
In June 2023, Anastasiia Berezovska, a Ukrainian woman, carried out a bomb attack targeting Ukrainian-born businessman Vadym Yermolayev and his family in Monaco. The blast injured Yermolayev, his son, and another person severely. Shortly after the attack, Berezovska's body was found with gunshot wounds near Kyiv.
In prison in Kyiv, Vitalii Zhykovych, a former Ukrainian security services officer linked to the case, told the BBC that he believed senior members of HUR (Ukraine’s military intelligence agency) ordered the attack. Zhykovych claims Berezovska was his "agent," but denies sending her with lethal intentions or killing her himself.
Zhykovych also stated that another accused, active-duty intelligence officer Vladyslav Reut, had initially planned to use Berezovska for a dangerous mission despite her lack of training. However, the narrative around who ordered the Monaco attack remains unclear and disputed among different sources.
Written for “Monaco Bomb Attack Suspect Interview” on 2026-10-09,
grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
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No political leaning scored for article 68107 · logged 2026-10-09
A former Ukrainian security service officer, who was one of the accused linked to a bomb attack on an oligarch in Monaco, claimed that he believed the attack was authorised by senior figures in Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, according to a report.
Vitalii Zhykovych, who remains in prison in Kyiv, has spoken for the first time since being arrested and denied allegations that he was linked to the attack.
uncertain
he → accuse → attack
Ukrainian-born businessman Vadym Yermolayev, 58, his 13-year-old son, and a woman were injured on 29 June when an explosive was remotely detonated in a targeted attack near the French border.
asserted
explosive → bear → border
The main suspect identified was Anastasiia Berezovska, a 39-year-old Ukrainian woman who allegedly disguised herself as a man.
uncertain
who → identify → man
She fled to France and an Interpol Red Notice was issued, but Berezovska's body was discovered in the woods west of Kyiv with gunshot wounds to the head a week later.
asserted
body → flee → head
Vladyslav Reut, an active-duty intelligence officer in Ukraine's military intelligence agency, was arrested and accused of her murder and he identified Mr Zhykovych as his accomplice.
asserted
he → arrest → accomplice
Mr Zhykovych told the BBC in an interview that Mr Reut, who was his “the boss”, had proposed the operation in Monaco against the oligarch.
asserted
who → tell → oligarch
"As Reut informed me, this operation […] had been authorised and approved by Reut's superiors, who served in the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defence [HUR]," he said.
asserted
he → inform → Defence
He denied involvement in planting the bomb or killing the woman filmed placing the explosive device in Monaco.
asserted
He → deny → Monaco
Mr Reut has told the court that Mr Zhykovych was responsible for the cold-blooded murder of the woman, who they took at gunpoint to a forest near the village of Yuriv, 60km (40 miles) west of the capital.
asserted
they → tell → capital
“Zhykovych fired the first shot at her in the back of the head.
asserted
Zhykovych → fire → head
She fell down.
asserted
She → fall → ?
He came up and fired another shot.
asserted
He → come → shot
I was standing a few metres away at that moment,” Mr Reut told the judge.
asserted
Reut → stand → judge
Mr Zhykovych claimed that Mr Reut had wanted to use Berezovska to carry out the bombing but agreed to send her on a reconnaissance mission instead after he objected, arguing that she had not been fully trained.
asserted
she → claim → mission
He said that Mr Reut then communicated directly with the woman and also allegedly provided her with the explosives.
uncertain
Reut → say → explosives
HUR has not commented on the latest allegations but said it is "committed to a full investigation" and providing "comprehensive support" to law enforcement bodies.
asserted
it → comment → bodies
Mr Zhykovych alleged in his interview that Mr Reut told him the bombing was retaliation for Mr Yermolayev allegedly “funding the annexation of Crimea”, which he understood to refer to taxes paid to Russia by businesses operating in occupied Crimea.
uncertain
he → allege → Crimea
“In my view, this constitutes grounds for the operation,” he said from prison.
asserted
he → constitute → prison
Mr Zhykovych’s lawyer Anatoliy Ivanov told CNN in August his client believed he was working on a secret mission for the Ukrainian intelligence services.
asserted
he → tell → services
Ukrainian officials have denied the claim.
uncertain
officials → deny → claim
Mr Yermolayev has denied business interests linked to Russia.
asserted
Yermolayev → deny → Russia
Mr Yermolayev, who was born and raised in the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro, renounced his Ukrainian citizenship in 2017 and is now solely a Cypriot citizen.
asserted
who → bear → 2017
The real estate developer, 58, is a controversial figure in Ukraine and was sanctioned by Kyiv for alleged collaboration with Russia, accusations he has fiercely denied.
asserted
he → sanction → Russia
Ukraine’s SBU security agency said he had been trading alcohol in Russian-occupied Crimea and had paid millions in taxes to the Russian treasury, leading to his assets being frozen.
asserted
assets → say → treasury
The Aporia
