Italy Protests Release of Swiss Bar Owner Linked to Deadly Fire

Italy's Response to the Bar Fire Incident

ROME, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Italy formally protested on Saturday the release on bail of the owner of a Swiss bar engulfed in a deadly New Year's Day fire and recalled its ambassador to Switzerland, as the court's decision came under criticism in both countries. 

Jacques Moretti and his wife Jessica, owners of Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, are under investigation for negligent homicide and other crimes linked to the blaze that killed 40 people and injured more than 100, many of them teenagers.

Jacques Moretti was detained on January 9 but released on bail on Friday.

Government Statements and Actions

RELEASE 'AN INSULT' TO VICTIMS' FAMILIES, PM MELONI SAYS

Public Reaction and Victims' Families

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni overnight called his release "an affront to the memory of the victims of the New Year's Eve tragedy and an insult to their families".

Six of those killed in the bar blaze were Italian as were 10 of the injured.  

A government statement on Saturday said Meloni and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani instructed Italy's ambassador to immediately contact the chief prosecutor in Switzerland's Valais canton to convey Italy's "strong indignation" over Moretti's release. 

It added that the court had taken the decision despite the seriousness of the alleged crime, the risk of flight and the possibility of evidence being compromised.

"The whole of Italy is clamouring for truth and justice, and is calling for respectful measures to be taken in the wake of this disaster, which take full account of the suffering and expectations of the families," the statement said.

Meloni and Tajani also ordered Ambassador Gian Lorenzo Cornado to return to Rome to determine what further action to take, it said.

A Swiss Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson was not immediately available for comment.

Moretti was released under a bail arrangement that included a 200,000 Swiss franc ($256,377) payment and an order to report daily to a police station.

Legal Implications and Concerns

Lawyers for the victims of the fire and their families said they were struggling to understand the court order, adding that their clients were concerned about evidence disappearing.

The Morettis have both expressed grief over the tragedy and said they would cooperate with prosecutors.

In a statement following Jacques Moretti's release, their lawyers said they would both "continue to comply with all requests from the authorities".

($1 = 0.7801 Swiss francs)

(Reporting by Cristina Carlevaro; Additional reporting by Emma Farge in Geneva; Editing by Joe Bavier)