The owners of a Swiss resort bar the place 40 individuals died in a New Year’s Eve blaze overtly blamed their helmet-wearing waitress — who was seen holding two flaming champagne bottles in photographs from the doomed bash — for sparking the tragic fire that claimed her life.
Jacques Moretti, 49, and his spouse, Jessica Moretti, 40, appeared in courtroom final week over the lethal fire at the Le Constellation nightclub in Crans-Montana and advised prosecutors, “It’s not us, it’s the others,” when requested about duty for beginning the inferno, French newspaper Le Parisien reported.
The couple, charged with “homicide, injuries and arson by negligence,” blamed their waitress, Cyane Panine, 24, for the fire.
French waitress Cyane Panine died in the Jan. 1, 2026, fire at Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, Switzerland. X
Jacques Moretti advised prosecutors that Panine, sporting a black bike helmet, climbed onto a coworker’s shoulders whereas holding two bottles of champagne topped with pyrotechnic candles, referred to as “magic fountains.”
“I didn’t forbid her from doing that,” he admitted. “I didn’t make her aware of any safety instructions. We didn’t see the danger. Cyane enjoyed doing it. It was a show, she loved performing.”
Jessica Moretti advised prosecutors that the younger waitress “liked to deliver these bottles, she did it of her own accord.”
“If I had thought of the slightest risk, I would have forbidden it,” she mentioned. “In 10 years of running the business, I never thought there could be any danger.”
However, Panine’s household revealed the younger staffer was not meant to be working that evening however was despatched by the Morettis from their restaurant to the nightclub, the Standard reported.
Panine is seen sporting a helmet whereas holding the bottle with the pyrotechnic candles earlier than the fire broke out. X
They claimed her bosses advised her to remain on the floor ground, greeting friends and guiding them to tables with a £900 minimal spend (about $1,240).
The server allegedly complained to her household about being compelled to work lengthy hours with out breaks and feeling exhausted each bodily and mentally.
During the night, Jessica Moretti allegedly urged Panine to “get the atmosphere going” by sporting the crash helmet, the outlet mentioned.
Jacques and Jessica Moretti, the couple who ran the Swiss bar that burst into flames throughout a New Year’s Eve occasion, arrive for questioning at the Public Ministry of the Canton of Valais in Sion, southwestern Switzerland, on Jan. 9, 2026. REUTERS
Surviving witnesses and the waitress’s household have strongly denied the accusations, alleging that Jessica Moretti, the supervisor that evening, directed Panine to hold out the stunt utilizing bottles and a helmet equipped by Dom Pérignon.
“I cannot accept that my daughter is remembered only as the girl with the helmet, with flares in her hands,” her grieving father, Jerome Panine, beforehand mentioned.
Her mom, Astrid Panine, mentioned her daughter “trusted people without the slightest suspicion. She paid the ultimate price for this with her life.”
“Cyane was spontaneous, radiant and full of heart,” she mentioned. “She possessed a beauty that went beyond the physical. She embodied it.”
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In courtroom, Jacques Moretti acknowledged shortcomings in fire security, saying, “There was no training, but employees were told what steps to take in case of fire when they were shown around the premises,” based on Le Parisien.
Confronted with claims {that a} employee did not know the place extinguishers have been situated, he mentioned, “The staff has several shifts, and maybe I forgot to give this information… Maybe I forgot,” Le Parisien reported.
Jacques Moretti additionally drew consideration to a service door on the constructing’s floor ground that was discovered locked from the inside — the identical door Panine and 6 different victims tried to flee via throughout the fire.
He claimed that after the tragedy, an worker delivering ice to Le Constellation closed the door’s high latch with out understanding why.
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“You shouldn’t run away, you should stay here and take responsibility,” Jacques Moretti allegedly texted the employee.
Denying the allegation, the worker mentioned, “I didn’t close a door that was already locked.”
Jessica Moretti additionally insisted that “the door was always open.”
“There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t wonder why that door was closed that night,” she mentioned.
Investigators later discovered that the owners had renovated the bar in 2015 with out informing native officers, together with the Cantonal Fire Department, Le Parisien reported.
Fire is seen inside the Le Constellation bar and lounge throughout the New Year’s celebration, in Crans-Montana, Swiss Alps, Switzerland, on Jan. 1, 2026. X
40 individuals died in a New Year’s Eve blaze, with greater than 100 injured. AFP by way of Getty Images
The Morettis additionally claimed the flammable soundproofing foam put in throughout the membership’s renovations — believed to have accelerated the fire — was accredited by fire officers and acoustic specialists.
They have drawn widespread backlash since the lethal fire, particularly after stories alleged that witnesses and surveillance footage confirmed Jessica Moretti escaping the burning venue with the money register whereas victims have been nonetheless inside.
“I accept what’s being said about us, even if it’s false. It’s nothing compared to what the families are going through,” Jacques Moretti mentioned.
“We are also victims, but not to the same degree. Losing a child is the worst thing that can happen.”
The couple has denied all prison and civil wrongdoing whereas going through negligence-related fees tied to 40 deaths and extreme burns to greater than 100 others.
If convicted, they withstand 20 years in jail.
