THE glam manager of the Swiss resort bar where 40 people were killed by a catastrophic fire was allegedly seen fleeing with a till full of cash.
Jessica Moretti, 40, has been accused of ignoring her customers and escaping with the night’s takings as the deadly blaze took over Le Constellation in the ski town of Crans-Montana.
Ms Moretti, who also owns the bar along with her 49-year-old husband Jacques Moretti, is currently under a formal criminal investigation by Swiss authorities.
They face charges of homicide by negligence, bodily harm by negligence and arson by negligence.
Various media outlets across Europe are reporting that Ms Moretti – a French national – could face further criminal charges, including “failing to assist people in danger”.
Dozens of people were trying to get out of the venue and pleading for help when she was allegedly seen escaping.
French daily Nice Matin reports: “As flames ravaged the establishment on New Year’s Day, Jessica Moretti, who suffered an arm injury, was reportedly filmed by security cameras fleeing with the cash register.”
Italy’s Le Repubblica also reported that Ms Moretti’s priority was to escape with the “cash register containing the evening’s takings”.
Another news outlet Public reports: “CCTV footage reportedly shows the bar owner leaving the premises with the cash register shortly after the start of the incident.
“The footage reportedly shows her carrying the bar’s cash register and the day’s takings in cash.”
Families of those who died or were injured in the fire have filed a legal complaint with the Swiss prosecutor’s office.
“Each family filed a complaint and joined the proceedings as a plaintiff. These applications were accepted [by prosecutors],” Romain Jordan, a Geneva-based lawyer, confirmed.
He did not specify the target of the legal complaint, adding only that it was “against all those responsible, without exception”.
Ms Moretti and her husband have also been accused of destroying evidence by blocking social media accounts in the aftermath of the devastating blaze.
Mr Jordan claimed that the Le Constellation bar suspended its Facebook and Instagram accounts while rescue operations were ongoing.
He told The Times that the accounts were blocked between “3am and 6.30am”, adding: “It’s curious that while the emergency operation was under way, someone was thinking about this.”
He claimed that the venue had been advertising its New Year festivities prior to suspensions and said: “They showed how the bar was, and [the suspension] shows that the question of security came to the managers’ minds straight away.”
Cops are now investigating renovation work carried out in 2015 after allegations of insufficient safety standards emerged.
The police probe will also seek to identify the use of fire extinguishers, emergency exits and other firefighting equipment on the premises.
One former waitress claimed the emergency exit was always locked.
The fire was one of the worst disasters in recent Swiss history and has led to an outpouring of grief in Switzerland, which will hold a national day of mourning this week.
It likely started when “fountain candle” sparklers were held aloft too close to the ceiling at the Constellation bar, the region’s chief prosecutor has said.
Images from before the tragic fire show a bartender in a crash helmet holding a lit sparkler aloft while on the shoulders of another employee wearing a Guy Fawkes mask.
An inferno engulfed the basement nightclub within minutes in what is known as a “flashover” fire, where all combustible materials in a room ignite simultaneously.
Some 119 people were injured, including many with severe burns.
Cops have now identified the bodies of all 40 victims who died in the tragic blaze.
All the victims range in age from 14 to 39 years old, with teenagers making up more than half of the death toll.
Some 26 of the 40 dead were teenagers, with the victims including a 14-year-old French national and a 14-year-old from Switzerland, police said.
In total, 21 of the dead were Swiss citizens, seven were French and six were Italian.
Other victims came from Romania, Turkey, Portugal, Belgium, as well as one Swiss-French dual national.
British schoolgirl Charlotte Niddam has been identified as one of the victims of a Swiss ski resort fire on New Year’s Eve.
Charlotte, believed to be 15, had not been heard from since the inferno erupted at a packed tourist bar in Crans-Montana, Valais.
The resort’s website lists Charlotte as a babysitter, adding that she is in Crans “very often”.
Teenager Charlotte previously attended Immanuel College, a private Jewish school in Bushey, Hertfordshire.
In a post on social media, her family said: “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beautiful daughter and sister, Charlotte.
“Details regarding the funeral arrangements will follow shortly. It is most likely on Thursday in Paris.
“Thank you for all your support those last few days.”
Tragic victims
Grief-stricken mum Laetitia Brodard-Sitre, who spent days searching for her missing son, Arthur, 16, said he was among them.
She said: “Our Arthur has now left to party in paradise.”
Promising Swiss boxer Benjamin Johnson, 18, and bouncer Stefan Ivanović, 31, who helped save several revellers from the flames, were also named among the dead.
Chiara Costanzo, a 16-year-old Italian girl, became the second named victim of the blaze after her father, Andrea, told Italian newspaper Il Corriere della Sera that “my beloved Chiara is no more”.
Her identification followed that of Italian 17-year-old golf prodigy Emanuele Galeppini yesterday.
The teen was a keen golfer and his Instagram account features a pic of him posing with pro Rory McIlroy, captioned “Pic of the year”
More than 2,000 mourners walked in silence through the Swiss ski resort in a poignant procession which followed an emotional church service in memory of the dead.
Mourners, young and old, wiped tears from their eyes during the hour-long service as flags outside flew at half mast.
One woman inside the church listened intently, her hands clasped tightly, as speakers delivered readings in German, French and Italian.
The crowd then slowly walked in silence from the church towards the makeshift shrine set up in the shadow of Le Constellation bar to pay their respects.