Martigny, Switzerland, Jan 9, (dpa/GNA) – Swiss prosecutors have requested pre-trial detention for the owner of the ski resort bar, where 40 died in a fire at a New Year’s party, citing a risk that he could flee.
“Based on his statements, his previous work history, and his personal situation in Switzerland and abroad, the prosecutor’s office considered the risk of flight to be concrete,” the prosecutor’s office in the canton of Valais said.
The man’s wife, who also operated the establishment, is not considered a flight risk and will not be placed in pre-trial detention, prosecutors said.
The fire erupted in the early hours of January 1 at the Le Constellation bar in the town of Crans-Montana. In addition to the fatalities, nearly 120 people were injured, most of them seriously.
Investigators believe the disaster was triggered by a sparkler attached to a bottle that set fire to foam insulation on the ceiling.
GNA