ONE of the owners of the Swiss bar where a blaze killed 40 people was allegedly a pimp who served time in jail – before his dodgy DIY turned Le Constellation into a death trap.
Jacques Moretti, 49, reportedly had an extensive criminal history including convictions for “fraud, kidnapping and false imprisonment.”
Moretti owned the bar with his 40-year-old wife Jessica Moretti, and the couple are under investigation for manslaughter after a deadly blaze killed 40 and injured 115 in the early hours of New Year’s Day.
But Jacques Moretti is “is no stranger” to the justice system, Le Parisien reported, claiming the bar owner is a known pimp who had served time in prison in the southeast of France.
It stated: “He is known for pimping cases dating back some twenty years, as well as for a kidnapping and confinement case.”
Quoting its own legal source, RTL, a national radio network, said: “The Corsican-born man in his sixties was imprisoned in Savoie in 2005, for involvement in cases of pimping, fraud, kidnapping, and false imprisonment.”
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Europe 1 reported that Moretti was “convicted and imprisoned in Savoie, France, about twenty years ago for fraud, kidnapping, and false imprisonment”.
The radio station continued: “Since then, he has supposedly kept a low profile.
“Here in Crans-Montana, he owns three businesses – two bars, including Le Constellation, and a restaurant, Le Vieux Chalet, which he completely renovated last year.”
There was no initial response to the revelations from lawyers representing Mr Moretti, who is is originally from Ghisonaccia, on the Mediterranean island of Corsica.
The 49-year-old pimp was reportedly behind a DIY reno that narrowed the fire escape stairs in the basement of Le Constellation.
The staircase, said to be the only way out of the alpine bar’s basement club, was almost halved in width during a renovation ten years ago, BILD reported.
The German paper reported that bar owner Jacques Moretti, 49, was behind the change, made as he renovated his ski resort bar with friends.
On the night of the “flashover” fire, no more than three people could stand alongside each other on the stairs at any one time, significantly slowing their escape.
Survivors described a crush to escape the crowded club basement, where a huge fire raged.
Attorney General Beatrice Pilloud from the canton of Valais said: “It was indeed a narrow staircase.
“We need to check whether all safety regulations were followed.”
The photos also show soundproofing mats being attached to the ceiling – it was these mats which caught fire as around 200 revellers celebrated the new year at the alpine bar.
Jessica Moretti is under criminal investigation for manslaughter alongside her husband, the alleged pimp, for the blaze at Le Constellation.
They also are also under investigation for “bodily harm and arson by negligence,” according to Swiss state prosecutors.
A preliminary investigation attributed the fire to sparklers which were placed inside champagne bottles lighting up the basement ceiling.
Ms Moretti, who suffered a burned arm in the blaze, is the daughter of Jean-Paul Maric, a senior fire chief in Cannes, on the French Riviera, Nice Matin reported on Sunday.
and her Uncle is Jean-Pierre Maric, President of the Nearby Auribeau-Sur-Siagne Forest Fire-Fighting Committee.
A family friend of Ms Moretti, whose full name is Jessica Anne Jeanne Maric Moretti, said on Sunday: “Her father and other relatives are highly respected fire-fighters in the south of France. Protecting people from fire is part of the family tradition.”
The Morettis were questioned by Swiss prosecutors on Friday, and both are currently at liberty, as they assist the judicial authorities with their enquiries.
Swiss attorney general Béatrice Pilloud said: “Everything suggests that the fire started with incandescent candles placed in champagne bottles, which were brought too close to the ceiling, causing a rapid and widespread conflagration.”
Mr Moretti has claimed his bar “followed all safety regulations”, despite only being inspected “three times in ten years” by health and safety officials.
Article 8 of the local fire prevention code states that inspections must take place “every year in buildings open to the public or presenting special risks”.
It comes as two ex-employees of the bar claimed that fire extinguishers were often locked away and the emergency exit was also often bolted shut.
Known only as Maxime and Sarah, the former staff told BFM that fire safety training at Le Constellation had been “dicey”, as more victims of the deadly fire were named.