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The Ukrainian businessman who survived an assassination attempt in Monaco has accused Ukraine's military intelligence agency of organizing the attack. In his first public statement since the bombing, Vadym Iermolaiev alleged that serving and former officers of the GUR military intelligence agency were behind the attempted killing, which left him injured and his partner critically wounded.

"Based on the investigative evidence available to us, we have no doubt that serving officers of the main intelligence directorate of the ministry of defence of Ukraine, commonly known as the GUR, were directly involved in this attempted assassination," Iermolaiev said in a statement published by his lawyers.

Coverage Comparison

The Guardian's reporting on the case has evolved from initial details of the suspected bomber's identification and subsequent murder to Iermolaiev's direct accusation against the GUR. Earlier coverage focused on the murky circumstances surrounding the death of Anastasia Berezovska, the woman identified by French police as the suspected bomber. The investigation into her murder revealed allegations of involvement by Kyiv's intelligence agencies.

In a later report, The Guardian highlighted Iermolaiev's accusation, framing it as a direct challenge to Ukrainian authorities' portrayal of the case. Ukrainian prosecutors have sought to describe the bombing as the actions of a rogue intelligence officer, alleging that Reut concealed his contacts with Berezovska and acted without the knowledge or authorization of the agency's leadership. Iermolaiev rejected that account.

Key Claims

  • French police identified Anastasia Berezovska as the person captured on CCTV leaving a rucksack outside a Monaco apartment block. The bomb exploded as Vadym Iermolaiev emerged from the building with his partner and their 13-year-old child.
  • Berezovska, 39, who had disguised herself as a man, fled in a car with German registration plates, crossing into France and then Italy. On 1 July, she traveled to Ukraine, catching a bus to her home town of Zhytomyr, west of Kyiv. Ukrainian officials announced on Tuesday that her body had been found in woods near the capital.
  • According to Ukraine's SBU intelligence agency, Berezovska was met by two men who had made payments to her bank and crypto accounts. One of them, Vladyslav Reut, appeared in court on Thursday, accused of her murder. Reut identified his alleged accomplice as Vitaliy Zhykovych, a former Kyiv region policeman. In a separate report, the second suspect is named as Oleksandr Zhykovych, a former law enforcement officer.
  • Ukrainian media reported that Reut, 33, studied law at the national university in Kyiv and worked for Ukraine's GUR military intelligence agency. He served in unit A2772, a training centre for special operations forces, as reported by Radio Liberty.
  • Reut claimed Zhykovych was responsible for Berezovska's killing. He told a Kyiv court that the two men took her at gunpoint to a forest near the village of Yuriv, about 60km (40 miles) west of the capital. "Zhykovych fired the first shot at her in the back of the head. She fell down. He came up and fired another shot. I was standing a few metres away at that moment," Reut told the judge. He said four shots were fired before Zhykovych.
  • Iermolaiev's accusation implicates serving and former GUR officers in the attempted assassination.

Perspectives

Iermolaiev and his legal team: Vadym Iermolaiev and his lawyers assert that evidence indicates direct involvement of serving GUR officers in the attempted assassination, dismissing the idea of a rogue operative.

Ukrainian prosecutors: Ukrainian prosecutors have sought to characterize the case as the actions of a rogue intelligence officer, alleging that Reut acted without the knowledge or authorization of the agency's leadership.