Prosecutors expand Swiss ski bar fatal fire probe to include mayor, documents show
Mobile phone vision shows Le Constellation bar engulfed by flames in the early hours of January 1. (Supplied)
In short:
Swiss prosecutors have added the mayor to those under criminal investigation for a fatal New Years Eve ski resort fire that killed 41 people.
The fire that tore through the "Le Constellation" bar in Crans-Montana was one of the worst disasters in modern Swiss history.
What's next?
The case now has nine defendants who, if convicted, could face a maximum penalty of four and a half years in prison.
Swiss prosecutors say five more current and former local officials - including the mayor - are under criminal investigation over the New Year bar fire in the ski resort of Crans-Montana that killed 41 people.
Mayor Nicolas Feraud is named as a defendant in one of the prosecutors' documents seen by Reuters, summoning him for questioning on April 13.
Crans-Montana Mayor Nicolas Feraud pictured during a news conference in January. (Retuers: Umit Bektas)
He did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Feraud, in his 50s, has previously admitted the municipality missed multiple annual safety checks.
"We are deeply sorry. We had no indication that the checks had not been done as requested," Feraud told reporters in January.
The municipality triggered outrage on January 6 when it revealed that no annual safety check had been carried out at the bar since 2019.
The prosecutor's office in the Valais canton confirmed to Reuters new individuals had been placed under investigation in the case, which involves suspected crimes including negligent homicide, without giving details.
The move widens the scope of the investigation into the tragedy, which took place in the early hours of January 1 at Le Constellation, a local bar.
A couple visits a makeshift memorial outside the "Le Constellation" bar on January 7. (Reuters: Umit Bektas)
The documents named four other past and present local officials in the Valais canton whom Reuters is not identifying under Swiss privacy laws.
A source close to the case confirmed to AFP that a former municipal councillor in charge of security, and current or former public safety officials, have also been placed under criminal investigation.
The fire that tore through the "Le Constellation" bar was one of the worst disasters in modern Swiss history and has strained relations with neighbouring Italy, which lost six nationals in the blaze.
Besides those killed -who were mostly teenagers - a further 115 people were injured in the fire, many of whom remain in hospital.
Many young people remain in hospital with burn injuries.
The tragedy has also rattled the lucrative tourism sector.
A flag at half‑mast almost a month after a deadly fire during a New Year’s Eve party at the "Le Constellation" bar in the upscale ski resort of Crans‑Montana. (Reuters: Denis Balibouse)
The affluent town of Crans-Montana is popular among French, Italian and American tourists and known both for its sunny, south-facing ski slopes and its golf courses.
Prosecutors' inquiries initially focused on the French bar owners, who remain under investigation.
The probe was expanded in late January to include Crans-Montana's current head of public safety and a former fire safety officer in the town.
Jacques and Jessica Moretti arrive for questioning at the Public Ministry of the Canton of Valais in Sion in January. (Reuters: Umit Bektas)
Bar owners Jacques and Jessica Moretti have both voiced grief over the fire and said they would cooperate with the investigation.
The case now has nine defendants who, if convicted, could face a maximum penalty of four and a half years in prison.
-Reuters and AFP