Cafe owner convicted in fire death of worker

In the Novosibirsk region, the owner of a café where an employee died in a fire has been convicted. This was reported by the regional Investigative Committee.

According to the investigation and court, on the morning of 4 January last year, the owner, knowing that the electrical equipment in the café was faulty, allowed its operation in an emergency mode.

«As a result, at the junction of the input cable with the electrical panel, it heated up, melted, and caught fire, causing smoke and the spread of fire through the café premises,» the statement said.

During the fire, one of the café workers who was in the basement had only one exit to the first floor. She was unable to escape and died at the scene.

The fire occurred around 8:40 a.m. in the village of Kochki. The roof of the establishment caught fire and later collapsed. According to preliminary data, the fire area was 90 square meters.

The café owner was found guilty of violating fire safety requirements, committed by a person who had the obligation to comply with them, which negligently caused a person«s death (Part 2 of Article 219 of the Russian Criminal Code).

The court sentenced him to 2 years and 6 months in a penal colony settlement. In addition, the man was banned from engaging in activities related to public catering services for two years.

Earlier, it was reported that a fire occurred in a private house in the Zaeltsovsky District of Novosibirsk.