Crans-Montana fire: Bar owners in Swiss fire tragedy to be questioned on Jan 9

GENEVA - The French owners of the bar in a Swiss ski resort town that went up in flames on New Year’s Eve will be questioned on Jan 9, sources close to the investigation said.

French couple Jacques and Jessica Moretti owned and managed the

Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana

, which was filled with young partygoers when the blaze erupted at around 1.30am on Jan 1.

Forty people, most of them teenagers, were killed, and 116 were injured.

The pair, who are facing charges of manslaughter by negligence, bodily harm by negligence and arson by negligence, will be questioned by the public prosecutor’s office in the nearby town of Sion, a source close to the investigation, who asked not to be named, told AFP on Jan 8.

This will mark the first time the couple is questioned by investigators since the charges against them were announced on Jan 3.

The pair, who have not been detained, said in a statement on Jan 6 that they were “devastated and overwhelmed with grief”, and pledged their “full cooperation” with investigators.

“We will under no circumstances attempt to evade these matters,” they said.

A number of questions have been raised about whether fire safety standards were respected in the bar, where prosecutors believe the blaze started when

champagne bottles with sparklers attached

were raised too close to sound insulation foam on the ceiling in the bar’s basement section.

On Jan 6, municipal authorities acknowledged that

no fire safety inspections

had been conducted at the Le Constellation since 2019.

Questions have also been raised about the couple’s background and numerous real estate holdings.

According to sources close to the case, Mr Jacques Moretti was known to the French justice system for procuring, and had served some time in jail.

Mr Sebastien Fanti, a lawyer representing four families of the injured, hailed the news the Mr Moretti’s would be questioned in the case, telling AFP he hoped it signalled “a welcome resurgence of the investigation”.

The questioning will focus on the couple’s personal circumstances, according to another source close to the case.

“Establishing the defendants’ personal situation, particularly from an economic standpoint, is essential,” Mr Romain Jordan, a lawyer representing several families, told AFP.

Once the investigation concludes, the Wallis region’s public prosecutor’s office will determine whether to file an indictment against the pair or to close the case. AFP