The Chisinau Appeals Court gave harsher punishments to three of the four persons tried in the case of the gas cylinder explosion at the café “La Soacra” compared with the Centru branch of the Court of Chisinau. The judgment was passed on January 29 after the Chisinau Prosecutor’s Office challenged the decision pronounced by the Centru branch in December 2016, IPN reports.

The Chisinau Appeals Court upheld the first court’s decision in relation to the manager of the café, who will serve six years in jail.

The employee of the General Trade Division of the Chisinau City Hall was sentenced to six years and a half in jail at a time when the first court imposed only a fine on this.

The specialist of the Chisinau Public Health Center, who was given a two-year suspended sentence by the first court, was also sentenced to six years and a half by the Appeals Court. The fireman got seven years in jail, as opposed to six years given by the first court.

The manager of the café was found guilty of violating the labor protection rules and security rules at enterprises facing the danger of explosion. The functionaries were accused of misuse of power as they neglected the irregularities identified at the café. These were banned from holding ever public posts.

The café “La Soacra” situated near the Central Market of Chisinau caught fire after a gas cylinder exploded in its kitchen on January 9, 2016. As a result, four persons died, while 13 were hurt.