Dark history of the bar in Switzerland that burned down on New Year's Eve
A couple in their 40s with a rich criminal history, including soliciting prostitution, own the bar in the Swiss Alps where a fire claimed the lives of more than 40 patrons, most of which were teens
The authorities in Switzerland are still investigating the fire that claimed the lives of more than 40 revelers on New Year's Eve at the Constellation Bar in the town of Crans-Montana in the Alps. With each passing day, new details emerge about the shady past of the owners—Jacques and Jessica Moretti, a couple in their 40s—details that should have raised several red flags.
Earlier this week, it was reported that the local municipality has not conducted a basic safety inspection at the site for six years. Furthermore, local media report that Jacques, a 49-year-old French citizen, has a criminal record for soliciting prostitution, tracing back to years before he turned the "La Constellation" bar into a death trap.
In 2008, the French authorities accused him of recruiting young women in France as escorts in a massage parlor in Geneva. As a result, Morti was sentenced to a year in prison, after which he relocated his life to Switzerland after being banned from managing a business in France.
Currently, the couple is under investigation for involuntary manslaughter. Ironically, Jessica, who was also injured in the fire, is the daughter of the head of the fire department in the city of Cannes, France, and the niece of another senior official in the department.