New footage from the deadly New Year's Eve fire at a Swiss ski resort nightclub allegedly shows the bar's co-owner filming the moment a waitress, wearing an obscuring helmet, inadvertently sparked the inferno that killed 40 people.
Footage Captures Alleged Owner During Fatal Moment
According to reports from German newspaper Bild, a video clip from inside Le Constellation in Crans-Montana shows a woman believed to be co-owner Jessica Moretti, 40, holding a phone and a champagne bottle topped with a lit sparkler. In the same clip, waitress Cyane Panine, 24, is seen sitting on the shoulders of in-house DJ Mateo Lesguer, 23.
Panine was reportedly wearing a novelty Dom Pérignon 'motorcycle crash helmet' with a black visor that severely limited her vision. As the alleged Ms Moretti films the celebration, the sparkler is said to have ignited soundproofing foam in the basement ceiling. Both Cyane Panine and Mateo Lesguer died in the subsequent blaze.
Narrowed Stairwell Becown a Death Trap
Investigators have determined that a critical factor in the high death toll was a severely narrowed stairwell. Jacques Moretti, 49, Jessica's husband and co-owner, admitted during the investigation that he reduced the stairwell's width from three metres to just one metre during renovations in 2015.
A source close to the enquiry revealed that 34 of the 40 victims perished on this cramped staircase. "This amounts to 85 per cent of the dead," the source stated. "They were trapped on the tiny staircase as everyone fought to get out." The wooden steps and handrails ultimately collapsed under the pressure of the fleeing crowd, plunging people into the basement.
Owners Face Manslaughter Investigation
Jessica Moretti is now under formal investigation for multiple alleged crimes, including 'manslaughter by negligence'. A Swiss court has imposed a travel ban on her, ordering her to surrender her passport and report to police daily, citing a 'risk of flight'.
Jacques Moretti is in pre-trial detention for at least three months. The couple, questioned on January 9, 2026, have denied any civil or criminal wrongdoing. They face up to 20 years in prison if charged and found guilty.
Further allegations have emerged, including claims from Cyane Panine's parents that an emergency exit was locked to prevent people from avoiding table charges of around £900. Jacques Moretti confirmed a 'ground-floor service door' was locked from the inside when the fire started, which he forced open to find victims suffocating behind it.
Adding to the mystery, the nightclub's CCTV system reportedly 'crashed' three minutes before the fire broke out, and social media pictures and videos from the bar vanished hours after the tragedy, raising suspicions about evidence being destroyed.
