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Perm fire case suspect convoyed to Perm

At present, Mrykhin has been convoyed to the Perm Territory and is kept at remand prison №1 in Perm

PERM, October 11 (Itar-Tass) — One of the defendants in the criminal case over the fire at the Khromaya Loshad (Lame Horse) nightclub in Perm in 2009, in which more than 150 people died has been convoyed to the Perm Territory. Defendant Konstantin Mrykhin is a de-factor co-owner of the club, an official at the regional department of the Investigation Committee told Itar-Tass on Tuesday.

"At present, Mrykhin has been convoyed to the Perm Territory and is kept at remand prison # 1 in Perm. Investigative actions are underway to complete the probe into the criminal case," the SK official said.

According to the investigators, Mrykhin, together with other co-owners of the nightclub and its administration, arranged a celebration and fireworks, in violation of fire safety rules on December 5, 2009, which caused a fire. There were flammable structures and materials in the cafe, and the number of evacuation exits did not conform to regulations.

Overnight from December 5 to December 6, 156 people died in the nightclub, and another 64 were seriously injured. Nine victims suffered medium gravity harm to health, and another seven suffered light harm to health.

In September 2010, reports said Mrykhin, a nigh-club co-owner, was detained in Spain. The issue of his extradition to Russia was settled on June 16, after Spain had denied political asylum to Mrykhin.

Mrykhin is accused of the commission of crime under Criminal Code articles on the provision of services that fail to meet the requirements for the safety and health of consumers, which resulted in the death of two or more persons.

Other defendants are: Anatoly Zak, another co-owner of the nightclub, unofficial executive director Svetlana Yefremova and art director Oleg Fetkulov, father and son Igor and Sergei Derbenev, who arranged fireworks, and former head of the State Fire Safety Inspectorate for the Perm Territory Vladimir Mukhutdinov.

Perm's Lenin district court is hearing the case against eight defendants: Zak, Yefremova, Fetkulov, Mukhutdinov, Igor and Sergei Derbenev, and fire safety inspectors Dmitry Roslyakov and Natalia Prokopyeva.

The hearings were postponed in late June due to poor health of several suspects: Anatoly Zak, the owner of the nightclub, and former State Fire Safety Inspectorate employee Dmitry Roslyakov.

In December 2010, Zak was rushed to the Perm regional hospital with intestinal rupture. He was operated upon and advised about further surgery. After another surgical intervention in June, doctors said Zak needed long rehabilitation.

Dmitry Roslyakov was in Perm regional hospital from June 26 through July 8. He was a neurology department patient. His illness record says he has lumbar backbone problems.

The authorities recognized 404 people to be the victims within the criminal case, SK spokesman Vladimir Markin said earlier.

According to the SK, the fire broke out during the show with the so-called "cold fireworks." At first, foam plastic that lined the ceiling caught fire. The investigators also blamed the improper performance of duties by fire inspectorate personnel, who had failed to expose various violations of the fire safety regulations at the cafe.

The case materials comprise 120 volumes. In the course of the probe, the court arrested Zak's assets and property. Zak, who is the founder or co-founder of 28 commercial firms, owns 18 real estate facilities.