Two suspects face criminal charges in case of deadly Maxima store collapse: Latvian police

Two suspects are facing criminal charges in the case of a deadly collapse of a Maxima supermarket here in late 2013, Latvian police said on Tuesday.

Andrejs Zvejsalnieks, the defense lawyer of civil engineer Ivars Sergets, said his client was taken into custody on Tuesday, and police representative Sigita Pildava said an arrest warrant was also issued for Andris Gulbis who had examined the building.

Andrejs Grisins, the head of the Latvian criminal police, told journalists that charges would soon be laid against several other suspects in the case.

These people have been linked to serious errors made during work on the building's design project, the chief of the criminal police said.

Grisins explained that the charges would be based on forensic test results. "Investigators believe that there are no longer any obstacles to a legal assessment of the persons whose actions resulted in the death of 54 people," he said.

Commenting on the charges that might be laid in the case, Grisins said they might concern gross violations of construction rules which resulted in grave consequences.

Latvian General Prosecutor Eriks Kalnmeiers said in an interview with Latvia's LNT commercial TV channel on Monday that charges would be pressed against several suspects in the Maxima store collapse case, including individuals and legal entities.

More than 400 people were questioned during the investigation of the Maxima store collapse disaster.

In addition to the deaths, many were injured when the roof of the supermarket caved in on Nov. 21, 2013. A criminal investigation began to look into the deadly accident which was thought to be caused by errors in construction designs, neglect on the part of the builders or the supermarket's operator. Endit