Milan, 6 January (LaPresse) – "When I think that in the canton of Valais, the responsibility for fire inspections in public premises lies with the municipalities, I get a little worried. I wonder how a small mountain municipality like Crans-Montana can have the tools and personnel for such specific checks. This tragedy also raises another problem." This was stated in an interview with Corriere della Sera by Paolo Bernasconi, 82, public prosecutor in Lugano (Switzerland) from 1968 to 1995. He now teaches criminal law in economics at several Swiss universities. 'In order to operate, a public establishment must obtain authorisation from the local council after the premises and safety systems have been inspected, and then there are periodic checks to verify that the requirements are still being met. How seriously were the inspections carried out if a hundred people were placed in a windowless basement? The village is small, everyone knows each other, I wouldn't want anyone to have turned a blind eye,‘ he says. ’In this case, justice seems to be moving too slowly. It is true that these are culpable offences, but in the face of a disaster of colossal proportions and obvious omissions, I would have taken extraordinary measures, such as arrest and imprisonment or house arrest,‘ he emphasises, explaining that ’there is a risk of flight, because these are two French citizens who could theoretically leave Switzerland, and there is a risk of evidence tampering in a small town".
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