In a breakthrough interview conducted from his prison cell in Kyiv, former Ukrainian security services officer Vitalii Zhykovych has claimed that the June 30 bomb attack on millionaire businessman Vadym Yermolayev in Monaco—an explosion that left the businessman, his 13‑year‑old son and partner badly injured—was ordered by senior officials in Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, HUR.
Zhykovych says he worked as a so‑called “freelancer” for the SBU and was instructed by HUR officer Vladyslav Reut to coordinate the operation. Reut allegedly briefed Zhykovych on the target, describing Yermolayev as a “pensioner who paid taxes to Russia”, and underscored the strategic importance of removing the financial link to Crimea.
According to Zhykovych, Reut provided a pre‑bombing reconnaissance mission that involved the woman caught on CCTV footage, Anastasiia Berezovska, who was hired as the “agent” for the device. Zhykovych insists that while Reut promised her a substantial fee, he did not send her to carry out the attack and that Reut himself never entered the scene.
Reut has been arrested on charges of murder and double‑blame, and both men now accuse each other of the fatal shooting of Berezovska—who was found dead in the woods near Kyiv with gunshot wounds to the head. The case has shed light on a possible state‑backed assassination attempt and raised questions about the motivation behind targeting Yermolayev.
Yermolayev, who has long denied having business ties to Russia and now holds Cypriot citizenship, has largely dismissed theories that the attack was linked to the lucrative scam‑centre industry in Ukraine or criminal disputes in Crimea. He has, however, called for full transparency and justice while accusing civilians of orchestrating the plot.
