Bar operators speak out for the first time: "We are devastated and full of grief"

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• Following the fatal fire at the "Le Constellation" bar in Crans-Montana, the operators have spoken publicly for the first time.
• They emphasize their grief and their willingness to cooperate with the investigators.
• The couple are under criminal investigation for involuntary manslaughter and other offenses, but are not in custody.

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The operators of the "Le Constellation" bar in Crans-Montana VS, where a catastrophic fire occurred on New Year's Eve, have stated that they do not wish to shirk their responsibility. They wrote this in a statement to the AFP news agency.

"We are devastated and full of grief", Jacques and Jessica M. stated. It was the couple's first public statement after the Valais public prosecutor's office opened a criminal investigation against them on Saturday for involuntary manslaughter, involuntary bodily harm and negligently causing a fire.

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In the statement sent by their lawyers, the couple assured that they had full confidence in the investigators and would help to clear everything up. "You can be assured that we will cooperate fully with them in this regard and that we will not attempt to shirk our responsibilities in any way," the couple emphasized in the statement.

In the text, they stated that their "constant thoughts" were with the victims, their families and the injured and praised the "courage" of the rescue workers.

Owner is known to the judiciary

According to insiders, Jacques M. was known to the French judiciary for pimping. He was arrested in 2005 in the Savoie department south of Geneva and sentenced to prison in 2008.

New details known

Bar operator was not allowed to run a business in France

According to the French daily newspaper "Le Dauphiné Libéré", based in Grenoble, he was accused of recruiting young women in France to work in a Geneva massage parlor. The same source reported that M.'s conviction was linked to a ban on running a business in France.

According to another source familiar with the case, M. was charged in seven other cases, notably for fraud, without a conviction.

After the fire disaster in their bar in Crans-Montana, Jacques and Jessica M. were neither remanded in custody nor placed under house arrest in Valais.