THE owner of the Swiss bar where 41 people died in a horror blaze on New Year’s has been arrested and held in custody for an alleged violent attack on his wife.
Jacques Moretti, 49, allegedly beat up his wife Jessica Moretti, 41, on August 11, putting her in hospital.
Both are facing trial for the huge fire that ripped through their bar Le Constellation, in the Swiss ski resort of Crans Montana, killing 41 revellers as they celebrated the start of 2026.
Moretti was arrested at their home in Valais, Switzerland, and “placed in pre-trial detention” an investigating source said.
He is now being held for several domestic violence charges and is set to appear in court later this year, Swiss and French media reported.
Moretti couple’s lawyers told reporters: “These events, being investigated in a separate case, pertain exclusively to their private life, and we will therefore make no comment.
“They should not be confused with the Constellation tragedy, but they nevertheless fall within a context that cannot be ignored: that of a particularly intense ordeal that the Morettis have been trying to face together since January 1.”
The trial will be separate to the one in which both Morettis face convictions for their alleged part in the bar fire, alongside 14 others, including local councillors who gave the couple licences.
Both were charged with “manslaughter by negligence, causing injury by negligence, and causing arson by negligence” charged after the horror blaze.
The fire killed 41 people and injured 115 others.
Jacques Moretti was the registered owner of the bar which his wife managed on the night of the fire.
Since her last hearing on June 5, Jessica Moretti has also been charged with forgery, relating to an invoice for sound-insulating foam panels in the bar.
Most of the casualties were teens, as the ski resort bar was popular with young people.
Terrified New Year’s Eve revellers were left “screaming and running” for their lives as they were trapped inside the bar as an inferno tore through the basement club.
Eyewitness Bastien Frema, 20, said: “People were screaming. I saw people with burnt clothing shredded, hanging off them.
“People were yelling, trying to get help. We couldn’t do anything.”
Another said: “It was mayhem. People were so badly burned. No one knew what was happening.”
On fire safety, Jacques Moretti admitted: “There was no training, but employees were told what steps to take in case of fire when they were shown around the premises.
“Evacuate the customers, raise the alarm, and call the fire department. And of course, if they had time, use the fire extinguishers to put out the fire.”
When told one worker had no idea where extinguishers were kept, he replied: “The staff has several shifts, and maybe I forgot to give this information… Maybe I forgot.”
The couple also blamed an unnamed staff member for allegedly locking a basement emergency exit.
Moretti reportedly told investigators that he found a pile of bodies on the floor when he unlocked the door after the deadly blaze.
