Monaco’s chief prosecutor, Stéphane Thibault, said the blast occurred late Monday and that investigators were searching for a suspect who fled the scene on foot. Authorities have not determined a motive, and the investigation remains ongoing.

Media reports identified one of the injured as Ukrainian construction tycoon Vadym Yermolaiev. The businessman has previously said he renounced his Ukrainian citizenship in 2017 and later became a Cypriot citizen. In 2023, Ukraine imposed sanctions on him over alleged business ties to Russia.

Officials Say Family Appeared to Be Targeted

Monaco’s Minister of State, Christophe Mirmand, said surveillance footage suggested the victims were deliberately targeted.

According to Mirmand, the suspect was seen walking around the area several times before the victims arrived and detonated the explosive device as they entered the apartment building.

“It appears that the family was specifically targeted,” Mirmand said, adding that authorities have not established why the victims were attacked or who may have been responsible.

Monaco police have opened an attempted murder investigation but have not classified the incident as terrorism, Thibault told reporters.

Victims Hospitalized Following Blast

The explosion occurred at approximately 9 p.m. Monday near Monaco’s border with France.

Officials said the injured include a woman, a 13-year-old child and the male victim identified in media reports as Yermolaiev.

Thibault said the woman suffered life-threatening injuries. Mirmand later said she was transferred to a hospital in Nice, France, while her partner and the child sustained less severe injuries but remained hospitalized on Tuesday.

Authorities did not officially confirm the identities of those injured.

Surveillance footage reportedly showed the suspect escaping through a staircase leading to the neighboring French town of Beausoleil. Images published by French media showed an individual wearing a black jacket, light-colored trousers, white shoes and a black bucket hat that partially concealed the face.

Witness Describes Chaotic Scene

Residents living near the building described scenes of panic immediately after the explosion.

Silvano Ippolito, who lives across the street, said he heard the blast before seeing a young boy lying on the ground. He called his wife, a doctor, who rushed to provide emergency medical assistance before paramedics arrived.

According to Ippolito, she applied tourniquets and performed mouth-to-mouth resuscitation as the seriously injured woman began losing consciousness.

He also described seeing a blood-covered man emerge from the building before part of the staircase collapsed, causing him to fall onto Ippolito’s wife and a firefighter assisting at the scene.

Diplomatic Assistance and International Attention

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said its embassy in France, which also represents Ukraine’s interests in Monaco, was coordinating with local authorities. Ukrainian diplomats visited the scene and were providing consular assistance.

The attack drew a swift response from Monaco’s Prince Albert II, who condemned the explosion as “an odious act” and said all public services had been mobilized to ensure public safety.

Authorities said the injured family were regular residents of Monaco and that investigators had found no evidence indicating they had previously reported threats.

Businessman Previously Sanctioned by Ukraine

Vadym Yermolaiev built his fortune through the Alef Group, a diversified business with interests in commercial real estate, manufacturing and agriculture. Originally from the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, he became one of the country’s best-known real estate developers through large-scale projects in the city.

In an interview with Forbes Ukraine, Yermolaiev said he relinquished his Ukrainian citizenship in 2017 and became a citizen of Cyprus.

In December 2023, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy approved sanctions against Yermolaiev as part of broader measures targeting individuals and companies that Kyiv alleged maintained business connections with Russia or Russian-occupied territories.

The Cyprus Registrar of Companies lists a Vadym Iermolaiev as director of Vespano Ltd., a company registered in Limassol in 2019. Cyprus’ Interior Ministry declined to comment on his citizenship status, citing confidentiality rules.

Security Questions Raised in One of Europe’s Safest States

The explosion has shocked Monaco, a wealthy Mediterranean principality known for its luxury lifestyle, financial sector and extensive public security network.

Home to approximately 38,000 residents, Monaco is widely regarded as one of the safest countries in the world, supported by an extensive surveillance camera system covering much of the city-state.

Authorities continue searching for the suspect while investigators work to determine the motive behind the apparent targeted attack.

Tags: Monaco, Vadym Yermolaiev, Ukraine, Russia, Prince Albert II, Stéphane Thibault, Christophe Mirmand, Attempted Murder, Explosion, European Security, Criminal Investigation, Beausoleil

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MAYVILLE, N.Y. — The man who brutally attacked acclaimed author Salman Rushdie during a public event in 2022 has been sentenced to 25 years behind bars.

Hadi Matar, 27, quietly listened as the judge handed down the sentence Friday for the stabbing that left Rushdie blind in one eye and seriously injured. Matar did not deny the attack, and in a final court statement, he called Rushdie “a hypocrite” while claiming to support freedom of speech.

“Salman Rushdie wants to disrespect other people,” Matar said, wearing white-striped jail clothes and handcuffs. “He wants to be a bully.”

Rushdie, 77, did not attend the sentencing in western New York but shared a victim impact statement describing how the attack still haunts him with nightmares, according to Chautauqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt. The statement was not released publicly.

A Violent Assault Caught on Camera

During the trial, Rushdie recounted the terrifying moment when a masked assailant stabbed him multiple times as he was introduced at the Chautauqua Institution, a summer retreat known for fostering open dialogue and free speech.

Security footage played at trial showed Matar approach Rushdie from behind, repeatedly stabbing him in the torso. Despite his injuries, Rushdie fought back, staggering as the attacker continued until bystanders intervened.

After less than two hours of deliberation, a jury found Matar guilty of attempted murder and assault in February.

Judge Highlights the Attack on Free Speech

Judge David Foley emphasized the symbolic nature of the attack, noting that Matar chose to strike at a place celebrated for the free exchange of ideas.

“We all have the right to carry our ideals,” Foley said. “But interfering with someone else’s ability to do that through violence is a crime that must be punished.”

Matar also received a concurrent seven-year sentence for injuring another man who was on stage with Rushdie.

Rushdie’s Long Road to Recovery

Following the attack, Rushdie spent more than two weeks hospitalized and weeks more in rehabilitation. He detailed his recovery journey in his 2024 memoir, Knife.

Sentencing and Next Steps

Matar’s defense attorney asked for a lighter sentence, citing his client’s clean criminal record. But the prosecution called for the full 25 years, arguing the attack was carefully planned to cause maximum harm — not just to Rushdie, but to the hundreds watching.

Matar now faces a separate federal terrorism trial, where prosecutors will examine his motives. He has pleaded not guilty. If convicted, he could face life in prison.

The Fatwa Behind the Attack

Authorities say Matar acted to enforce a decades-old fatwa, or religious edict, calling for Rushdie’s death. The fatwa was issued in 1989 by Iran’s Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini after the publication of Rushdie’s novel The Satanic Verses, which many Muslims considered blasphemous.

Matar, a U.S. citizen from New Jersey, reportedly believed the fatwa was supported by Hezbollah and its leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Rushdie spent years in hiding following the fatwa but has traveled freely for more than 25 years since Iran said it would no longer enforce the death order.

Source: AP News – The man who stabbed author Salman Rushdie on stage has been sentenced to 25 years in prison

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The 49-year-old is facing three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder after a lunch she hosted in July 2023 allegedly turned deadly. The victims, all elderly, became gravely ill after consuming a homemade beef Wellington suspected to have contained death cap mushrooms, one of the most lethal fungi known.

The Victims

The tragedy unfolded in the small town of Leongatha, about 135 km (84 miles) southeast of Melbourne. Among the deceased are:

• Gail Patterson, Erin’s former mother-in-law
• Donald Patterson, her former father-in-law
• Heather Wilkinson, Gail’s sister

Heather’s husband, Ian Wilkinson, was also hospitalized in critical condition but ultimately survived.

A panel of 15 jurors was finalized Tuesday at the Latrobe Valley Magistrates’ Court in nearby Morwell. Opening statements are scheduled for Wednesday, launching what is expected to be a five to six-week trial.

Presiding Justice Christopher Beale also informed the jury that separate charges of attempted murder against Erin’s estranged husband, Simon Patterson, had been dropped.

“Those charges have been dropped and you must put them out of your mind,” Justice Beale instructed the jury.

Erin Patterson has pleaded not guilty to all charges. She has consistently denied any intent to harm her guests, insisting the mushroom poisoning was a tragic accident.

The case has gripped public attention due to its strange and chilling details: a quiet family lunch in a rural Australian town turning fatal — allegedly at the hands of the host.

Interest in the case has soared both in Australia and abroad. Media access to the courtroom has been tightly controlled, with only six seats reserved for press, distributed via a daily ballot. An overflow room has been set up to accommodate additional spectators.

The story’s reach extends beyond the courtroom:

• ABC, Australia’s national broadcaster, is producing a daily podcast chronicling the trial.
• Streaming platform Stan has already commissioned a documentary series, calling it “one of the highest profile criminal cases in recent history.”

As the trial unfolds, the world will be watching closely — not only for answers to a baffling tragedy but to understand how a seemingly ordinary family meal could end in such horror.

This story is developing and will be updated as new details emerge.

Source: CNN – ‘Mushroom murder’ trial begins for woman accused of killing lunch guests in Australia

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Jillian Shriner, author and wife of Weezer bassist Scott Shriner, is at the center of a shocking incident that unfolded this week in Los Angeles. She was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after being shot by police during a confrontation in the Eagle Rock neighborhood.

According to the Los Angeles Police Department, the incident took place Tuesday afternoon as officers were tracking suspects related to an unrelated hit-and-run case. While searching the rear yard of a residence, officers reportedly saw a woman — later identified as 51-year-old Jillian Shriner — inside a neighboring home holding a handgun.

Police say they issued multiple commands for her to drop the weapon. She allegedly refused and pointed the gun at the officers, prompting an officer-involved shooting. Shriner was struck by gunfire and retreated inside her home, only to emerge shortly afterward, where she was taken into custody.

Shriner was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and released the following day after posting a $1 million bond, according to public records. She is expected to appear in court on April 30.

The LAPD has not clarified why Shriner was armed or what led to the confrontation, especially since she had no known involvement in the hit-and-run investigation that initially brought police to the area.

A 9mm firearm was recovered from the residence. Fortunately, no officers or bystanders were injured during the incident.

Video footage from CNN affiliates KCBS/KCAL and KABC captured dramatic scenes. In one clip, two women are seen emerging from a home with their hands raised. One of them, believed to be Shriner, is later seen lying face down as police move in to handcuff her.

Other aerial footage showed the same woman, with a visible limp, being assisted by medics and escorted into an ambulance. She was treated at a local hospital for what authorities described as a non-life-threatening gunshot wound.

Jillian Shriner has been married to Scott Shriner, bassist for the rock band Weezer, since 2005. The band is currently scheduled to perform at Coachella this coming weekend, with a set at the Mojave tent on Saturday.

Representatives for both Jillian Shriner and Weezer have not yet issued public statements regarding the incident.

Source: CNN – Weezer bassist Scott Shriner’s wife arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after being shot by police

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