In a criminal case regarding the terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall, charges were brought against two employees of the concert hall. They are accused of providing services that do not meet safety requirements (Part 3 of Article 238 of the Criminal Code), Kommersant reports.
The fact that a criminal case was opened under this article because of the terrorist attack became known from the appeal ruling of the Moscow City Court on the complaint against the arrest of Nazrimad Lutfulloi, who, according to the Investigative Committee, “participated in a terrorist financing scheme.” The resolution states that the case was opened three days after the attack on Crocus, after which it was combined with the case of the terrorist attack.
According to Kommersant, the concert hall employees were released on their own recognizance. The investigation, the version of which is cited by the publication, believes that during the terrorist attack at Crocus, the fire exits were closed, which is why many spectators were unable to leave the burning building. As a result, about 80 people died — they burned or suffocated from carbon monoxide while trying to hide in various rooms, including toilets.
The defendants did not admit guilt. They claim that the fire exits were open, but people were unable to use them because of the terrorists, writes Kommersant.
The son of the owner of Crocus, Emin Agarov, said after the terrorist attack that the emergency exits in the building worked “as usual.”
The terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall in Krasnogorsk near Moscow occurred on the evening of March 22. According to official data, 145 people became victims and more than 550 were injured. The first four suspects were detained the next morning; at the trial for the selection of a preventive measure, all had traces of torture.