Zolitūde tragedy retrial hears engineer and building supervisor

A construction engineer and a building supervisor gave evidence on Wednesday in the retrial of the criminal case over the Zolitūde tragedy, LSM reported. The hearing did not finish questioning the defendants, and the court plans to continue next week.

Ivars Sergets, the building engineer who was previously found guilty, testified first. He said that years of state inaction had also contributed to the tragedy, arguing that laws and procedures setting out responsibilities and stricter oversight were changed only after the 2013 collapse.

Sergets also focused on Vikom Industry, which manufactured metal trusses whose breakage and overloading contributed to the collapse. No one from the company has been charged. Sergets said he did not understand the amended charges against him and maintained his earlier testimony.

His lawyer, Artūrs Zvejsalnieks, said the defence position had not changed. He argued that Vikom Industry’s responsibility had not been adequately assessed and that Latvia’s construction system had been disorganised, relying at the time on Soviet regulations that were no longer in force.

Building supervisor Mārtiņš Draudiņš began his testimony by expressing sympathy to those injured and to the relatives of those who died. He testified remotely and presented materials showing the designs and how the structures looked in practice.

The prosecution continues to argue that all five people currently on trial should be held responsible.