A judge in Switzerland has ordered that one of the two co-owners of the ski resort bar where 40 people died in a fire on New Year's Eve be kept in detention for 90 days.
Swiss prosecutors have argued that Jacques Moretti, a French national, is a potential flight risk. He and his wife Jessica, who is also French, are suspected of manslaughter by negligence, bodily harm by negligence and arson by negligence.
The blaze at Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana also left 116 people injured. Many of the victims were aged under 20.
The fire is believed to have been started by sparklers in champagne bottles raised too close to the ceiling during celebrations.
Authorities acknowledged last week that the bar in the popular ski resort had not undergone safety checks for five years.
Jacques Moretti was first detained on Friday for an initial period of 48 hours. On Monday, a judge at what is known as a court of coercive measures ruled that he should be kept in custody for three months - a period that can be renewed under Swiss law.
The couple were placed under criminal investigation days after the devastating fire. Moretti's wife, Jessica, who is under house arrest, told reporters on Friday that she was sorry about the 'unthinkable tragedy'.
Prosecutors believe the fire started when people celebrating the New Year raised champagne bottles with sparklers attached, setting light to sound-insulating foam on the ceiling of the basement bar.
The news that the bar had not been inspected for five years has shocked families of the victims, who asserted that venues like Le Constellation should have been checked annually. Mayor Nicolas Feraud admitted culpability for the oversight.
Most of the victims of the fire were young - eight were under the age of 16. Many of the injured have severe burns, with eighty remaining hospitalized in Switzerland and other European countries.
