West Balkan Defendants Convicted In Hungary
- 2 Jul 2012 9:00 AM
Pest Central District Court on Wednesday sentenced the four defendants in the West Balkan nightclub disaster to 32 months in prison each. The verdict is open to appeal. Three women were trampled to death and several others were injured in a stampede on January 15, 2011 as about 3,000 people tried to flee the club when a rumour spread that it was on fire.
The club, then on Budapest’s Nyugati ter, was closed down as a result.
The four convicted are chief executive Gyozo Szalontay, event organisers Tamas Kecskes and Jozsef Csanadi and security official Istvan Hranek. All four pleaded innocent.
An investigation discovered that the organisers allowed eight times as many people into the space than allowed by regulations.
The prosecutor appealed for longer sentences, while the defendants lawyers will seek an acquittal. The case will be taken up by the Capital's Court.
Source: Hungary Around the Clock
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