A Monegasque couple have been deemed responsible for faulty electrical wiring that seriously injured a fireman trying to put out a blaze in the cellar of their apartment at Les Eucalyptus on avenue des Guelfes in Fontvieille.
Monaco’s Criminal Court was told that the incident happened on April 29, 2016. As the 45-year-old fireman advanced into the unlit cellar feeling the wall on his left for balance, he touched a loose wire that gave him a strong electric shock.
His injuries were serious enough for him to have to give up his 23-year career as a firefighter in Monaco. His life is now “punctuated by unimaginable pain, nocturnal spasms”, he told the court.
Video surveillance seen by the police during an investigation into the cause of the midday blaze showed a man lighting a cigarette and entering the cellar, coming out of it five minutes later without it.
The two defendants had provided contradictory statements and much of their evidence had been inconsistent, the court heard.
The court imposed a suspended sentence of six months on the two defendants, and called for the appointment of a specialist doctor for the injured fireman with a budget of €15,000. The court also ruled that the guilty parties pay €50,000 to the state.