The woman seriously injured in Monday night’s explosion in Monaco has been identified as Anna Nasobina, 46, the long-term partner of Ukrainian businessman Vadim Ermolaev — not his wife, as early reports had suggested.
Nasobina lost both legs in the blast at the Sun’s Palace apartment block on the rue Révérend-Père-Louis-Frolla and remains in intensive care fighting for her life. Ermolaev, 58, is also in a critical condition. The 13-year-old boy injured in the attack is their son, according to multiple reports.
Ermolaev’s official wife, Anna Yermolaieva, confirmed to Ukrainian state broadcaster Suspilne that she was not present at the scene on the night of the explosion. “We are currently in a state of severe stress and are actively cooperating with the investigation and law enforcement agencies,” she said.
Nasobina is originally from Dnipro, Ukraine, where she trained as a lawyer before relocating to London. She has served as director of UK investment firm Wycombe Square Investments LLP since January 2023 and is co-founder of Club Éclectique, a private literary and arts society with premises in central London.
A possible motive has begun to emerge. Ukrainian police have previously linked Ermolaev to an alleged €100 million call centre fraud scheme, though his legal assistant in Monaco, Theo Koshlyakov, said: “To date, no legal proceedings have been initiated against Mr Ermolaev in any jurisdiction.” Unnamed sources cited by The Guardian have suggested the attack may have been intended as a warning rather than a deliberate attempt at murder.
Le Figaro has reported that investigators are examining possible involvement of the SBU, Ukraine’s security service. Monaco’s prosecutors have not confirmed this and say the motive remains unknown.
The suspect remains at large. French and Monégasque authorities are continuing a coordinated search.
News.mc will continue to follow this story as it develops.