The announcement of the decision in the case of the President of the Cultural, Recreational and Humanitarian Association of Vila Nova da Rainha, municipality of Tondela, accused of manslaughter, is scheduled for this Monday afternoon.
The reading takes place almost five years and nine months after the fire that occurred on January 13, 2018 at the Association of Cultural Recreation and Humanitarian Aid of Vila Nova da Rainha, which killed 11 people during a Swedish tournament.
The death toll that day was eight dead and 38 injured, ranging from minor to serious, but the number of deaths increased to 11 in the following days.
The president of the association, Jorge Diaz, returns this Monday to the courtroom of Viseu to answer for 11 crimes of manslaughter and one crime of serious injury to physical integrity by negligence.
The only defendant in this case, whose trial began in June 2022, Jorge Diaz, has already admitted that the building was operated without a license for use and it did not occur to him that this was necessary.
“It didn’t occur to me at the time,” Jorge Diaz said at the first court hearing, saying the association had the support of both the Tondela city council and the parish council and no one had ever warned about the situation.
The indictment states that Jorge Diaz, “by not taking measures to legalize the work performed, did not allow the building to comply with all safety standards,” in particular with regard to fire hazards.
On the night of January 13, 2018, at least 60 people were participating in a Swedish tournament on the top floor of the building, and another 15 people were on the bottom floor.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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