Ukrainian Court Jails Intelligence Officer and Ex-Police Officer Over Woman's Killing

A Ukrainian military intelligence officer retracted his confession to the killing of Anastasiia Berezovska during court proceedings reported Friday, stating that his co-defendant fired the shots and that he had confessed out of fear for his life. A Kyiv court remanded the serving HUR officer and a former law enforcement officer in custody without bail after they were charged with the murder.

Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office said Thursday that the detention order followed the suspects' arrest on suspicion of killing Berezovska.

Berezovska's body was discovered with gunshot wounds to the head and pistol cartridges nearby. Investigators located the remains during a crime-scene reconstruction based on one suspect's testimony. Ukraine’s Security Service said the two men had repeatedly transferred cryptocurrency and money to Berezovska through bank accounts.

Authorities described the basement of the former law enforcement officer’s home as appearing to have been used as a torture chamber. Berezovska, a 39-year-old Ukrainian citizen, was wanted by Interpol for a June 29 bomb attack in Monaco that wounded property developer Vadym Yermolaiev, his partner and son.

Yermolaiev, who holds Cypriot nationality, was placed under Ukrainian sanctions in 2023 over alleged business dealings in Russian-annexed Crimea.

Berezovska faced charges in Monaco of attempted murder, placing an explosive device in a public place with criminal intent, and criminal conspiracy.