The suspect in a deliberate explosion that left Ukrainian billionaire Vadim Ermolaev fighting for his life has been found shot dead in Kyiv, according to Ukrainian police. Anastasiia Berezovska, 38, was wanted by Interpol after a backpack of explosives was planted inside a luxury Monaco apartment on June 28, 2026.
Suspect found dead in Kyiv
Ukrainian police discovered Berezovska's body in Kyiv at around 11pm on Monday night. The woman had reportedly been shot, sources told Ukrainian outlet Pravda. A current officer of the Main Intelligence Directorate and a former law enforcement officer have been detained in connection with her death.
Berezovska was wanted on suspicion of attempted murder, placing an explosive device on a public road with criminal intent, and criminal conspiracy. Interpol issued an arrest warrant for her and described the suspect as having a large tattoo possibly of a snake on her right arm from the shoulder to elbow.
Background of the suspect
Authorities believe she was working with accomplices, and a warrant for her arrest has been issued. Berezovska has Ukrainian nationality and can speak German. However, Ukrainian sources also suggested that she could have been born in Kazakhstan, with a Russian passport and living in Crimea, possessing Ukrainian documents so she could easily live in the European Union.
Berezovska was reportedly pro-Vladimir Putin and known for her ties to organised crime. The suspect was allegedly seen on CCTV, wearing a black hat, tracksuit, white jeans, and trainers, dropping off bags shortly before the blast at around 9pm on Monday. The backpack was believed to have been full of nuts and bolts, with the Monaco prosecutor claiming the person responsible for planting it then used a remote control to detonate.
The explosion and its victims
The explosion left Ukrainian billionaire Vadim Ermolaev, 58, in critical condition. His companion Anna Nasobina needed to have both legs amputated. In the immediate aftermath of the blast at the residential block in the La Rousse district, one fellow resident said it sounded as if ‘thunder was coming from behind the mountains’.
A horrified witness recalled seeing Nasobina with her ‘feet missing’ before she, along with Ermolaev and his teenage son, was rushed to a hospital in Nice. Silvano Ippolito, who lives across from the building, told BFM TV: ‘She was slumped over, covered in blood.’ He called for his wife, who is a doctor and was able to intervene ‘very quickly, before the emergency services arrived, to apply tourniquets and perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation’ as Nasobina was ‘losing consciousness’.
Investigation and arrests
A suspect likely used a car with a German registration plate. The investigation continues as authorities seek to identify all accomplices. The two detained individuals are being questioned in connection with Berezovska's death and possibly the explosion itself.
