The Investigative Committee opened a criminal case in connection with the fire at the Wildberries warehouse

“According to the investigation, as a result of abuse of power by unidentified persons who performed management functions related to compliance with fire safety regulations in the warehouse. <…> A fire broke out, as a result of which the warehouse building collapsed and the goods stored there were destroyed,” reports the press service of RF IC.

The department clarifies that investigators are now inspecting the scene of the incident and attempting to uncover the full circumstances of the incident.

The first part of article 201 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, “Abuse of power”, provides for a maximum prison sentence of up to four years.

Previously, RBC, citing a source close to the Ministry of Emergency Situations, wrote about three versions of the causes of the fire at the Wildberries warehouse. The first is the introduction of a fire source from outside by unknown persons, the second is an emergency operation of the power grid, the third is careless handling of the fire.

“It is now being determined whether the short circuit, of which traces were discovered, was primary, that is, the cause of the fire, or secondary, occurring as a result of the fire,” the source said.

According to TASS, when the fire started, the fire alarm in the warehouse went off due to repeated false alarms. The RBC source also confirmed this version.

The Wildberries press service denied the information about the failure of the alarm and highlighted that thanks to it the evacuation could be carried out.

On the afternoon of January 13, the head of the Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, ordered to open a criminal case into the fire and submit a report on the circumstances of the incident.

Photo: Ovchinnikova Irina / Shutterstock