An explosion rocked the heart of Monaco on Monday night, leaving at least three Ukrainian nationals, among them a billionaire oligarch, seriously injured. The victims are believed to have sought refuge in Monaco from the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
The devastating incident occurred shortly after 9 p.m. in the foyer of the Sun’s Palace, an apartment block on Rue Révérend Père Louis Frolla, located near the French border. The device, an improvised explosive packed with nuts and bolts, caused significant damage upon detonation.
Vadim Ermolaev, identified by multiple local sources including Monaco Matin, was among the injured. Ermolaev is recognized as one of the wealthiest individuals in Ukraine, having fled his homeland following the escalation of tensions with Russia.
A second victim, believed to be in their 50s or 60s and thought to be Ermolaev’s wife, suffered grievous injuries from the blast. A witness described the harrowing scene, stating she was ‘slumped over, covered in blood,’ with severe injuries reported to her feet.
A second victim in their 50s or 60s, thought to be Ermolaev’s wife, was reported by a witness as having ‘her feet missing,’ and ‘slumped over, covered in blood’ following the blast.
The third victim has been confirmed as a 13-year-old boy. It believed all three, who were in the building’s entrance at the time of the blast, belong to the same family.
The bomb, understood to be a ‘deliberate explosion’ was left in a backpack by a male suspect wearing a black hat and track suit top, and white jeans and trainers.
French newspaper Le Figaro said video surveillance images showed a man dropping a bag at the entrance of the building shortly before the explosion.
Three Ukrainian nationals including a billionaire oligarch fleeing the war against Russia were seriously wounded when a bomb exploded in the centre of Monaco (Pictured: Sun’s Palace on Rue Révérend Père Louis Frolla, where the bomb detonated)
One victim was named locally as Vadim Ermolaev (pictured) who is ranked among Ukraine’s wealthiest men
Monaco police officers patrol near the site of the explosion
The explosive device containing nuts and bolts went off in the foyer of an apartment block at around 9pm on Monday
Video footage posted online appeared to show him running away from the scene.
A manhunt for the suspect has since been launched by police in Monaco. An aide to France’s Interior Minister, Laurent Nunez, said police were working ‘to find the perpetrator, who has fled’.
Early reports from Lionel Beffre, a Monaco government official, said there were ‘three victims in a critical condition’, including Ermolaev, a Ukrainian woman in ‘their 50s or 60s’ and a 13-year-old.
A witness described seeing a ‘little boy’ at the site, who was ‘lying on the ground, covered in blood, with someone trying to help him’.
The two adults, including Ermolaev, were taken to the Pasteur Hospital in Nice, while the minor was treated close to the scene.
Emergency services treated four other people for shock and cuts from windows shattered in the blast, which appears to be part of a planned attack on the 1920s building on Rue Révérend-Père-Louis-Frolla.
Marine Cotta, a neighbour who witnessed the explosion, said the noise was ‘like fireworks’.
She said: ‘I could hear the police, alarms, and fire trucks, and that’s when I thought, ‘Okay, something is going on’.’
A manhunt for the suspect, who fled after planting the device, has since been launched by police in Monaco
A Ukrainian woman in ‘their 50s or 60s’ and a teenager have also been hospitalised following the blast
Christophe Mirmand, Monaco’s Minister of State, earlier said the detonation appeared to be ‘an attack’, but later dropped that term, describing it as a ‘deliberate explosion’.
He said: ‘The explosive device likely contained bolts and shrapnel.
‘The three victims were in the building’s entrance when the device exploded. It is presumed that they belonged to the same family.
‘Police services are currently gathering evidence. To my knowledge, this is the first time in history that such an act has occurred in the Principality.’
Monaco’s Prince Albert II described the incident as a ‘heinous crime’ and ‘a shock to the entire Monegasque community’.
Vadim Ermolaev is among the around one hundred Ukrainian oligarchs that have fled the war with Russia to live on the French Riviera.
He made his fortune as a real estate developer in Dnipro, central Ukraine, before leaving the country with his family.
His Alef Group, which he set up following the fall of the Soviet Union, was also involved in wine and spirits production in the Crimea.
Ermolaev became a citizen of Cyprus in 2019, and in December 2023 Ukraine imposed sanctions on him, including asset restrictions.
Like many oligarchs who became rich following the fall of the Soviet Union, he has faced accusations of criminality, including money laundering, which he denies.
Ermolaev has four children – two boys and two girls – with his wife, Anna Ermolaev, who is a dentist and charity worker.
In recent years, the family has been living in absolute luxury in Monte Carlo, where they had a very high profile.
Ermolaev was known for parking his Ukrainian-registered Bentley outside the Monte Carlo Casino Square.
He also owned a super yacht flying the Ukrainian flag and owned a high-security villa in nearby Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat.
Monaco is a globally famous tax haven on the French Riviera full of high-worth residents.
It prides itself on its crime-free reputation, and attracts billionaire business people and celebrities from all over the world.
But there have been numerous corruption scandals on the so-called Rock in recent years, including allegations of money laundering by mafia-style gangs, including ones from Ukraine.
Prince Albert, the ruler of Monaco, has pledged to clamp down on corruption, with the help of the French authorities.
Despite Monaco’s independence, its defence is primarily the responsibility of the government in Paris.