Crans-Montana: Swiss public prosecutor’s office rejects Italia’s application to join the proceedings as a civil party. Foreign Ministry: ready to appeal
According to the Swiss magistrates, “neither the Italian citizenship of several of the victims, nor the costs incurred by the Italian Republic in providing assistance to its citizens who were victims of the offences under investigation, are sufficient to confer the status of injured party”
The Public Prosecutor’s Office in Sion, in the Swiss canton of Valais, has rejected Italia’s request to join as a civil party in the investigation into the Crans Montana fire, in which six Italian youths died and 14 were injured. The decision – according to the investigation file, filed today – was communicated on 29 July to the Geneva-based lawyer Romain Jordan, who represents the Italian government.
According to the Swiss magistrates, “neither the Italian citizenship of several of the victims, nor the costs incurred by the Italian Republic in providing assistance to its citizens who were victims of the offences under investigation, are sufficient to confer the status of injured party”.
Farnesina: “Appeal against the Swiss decision on Crans-Montana”
Italia has already lodged an appeal against the order issued at the end of July which rejected Italia’s application to join the proceedings as a civil party. According to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through the Swiss lawyer representing Italia’s interests, a detailed and well-structured appeal has been lodged, refuting all the arguments put forward by the Swiss judge which are not accepted and which are also superseded in the light of the case law of the European Court of Human Rights; therefore, the Ministry insists that the application to join the proceedings as a civil party be admitted
On 30 July, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani met with Francesco Riva, president of the ‘Oltre Crans Montana 1 January 2026 – Italian Survivors’ Families’ Association and father of one of the young people injured in the fire at the ‘Le Constellation’ bar on New Year’s Eve. The Association was established on 7 July to represent the majority of the Italian families affected by the tragedy and to act as a point of contact in safeguarding the survivors and establishing the truth. On that occasion, the Minister had expressed his appreciation for the establishment of the Association and reiterated the Italian Government’s solidarity with the families affected by the incident, as well as its commitment to shedding full light on what happened, confirming its continued support for cooperation between the Italian and Swiss judicial authorities. On that same occasion, Tajani confirmed that the Italian authorities would continue to support the families of the young Italians involved in thethe fire, and had indicated that he had given precise instructions to the new Italian Ambassador to Bern, Luca Sabatucci, to continue to reiterate to the Swiss authorities the strong expectation that all civil and criminal liabilities for the tragedy be established as soon as possible.
Fire leaves 41 dead and 115 injured
The Crans-Montana massacre took place on New Year’s Eve 2026 inside the bar Le Constellation, situated in the centre of the ski resort of the same name in Switzerland. The misuse of fireworks inside the basement venue set alight the sound-absorbing ceiling panelling, rapidly triggering a major fire that claimed the lives of 41 people and injured a further 115, most of whom were young people and children. Investigations are currently underway to establish who is responsible, with the main suspects being the owners of the venue, Jacques Moretti and Jessica Maric, who are accused of failing to comply with fire safety regulations and of overcrowding the premises.
